Jack O'Connor has heaped praise on Declan O'Sullivan in the wake of the former Kerry captain's retirement from inter-county football.
O'Connor, who managed Kerry to three All-Ireland titles between two stints from 2004 to 2009, said that his Dromid Pearses club mate has been one of the Kingdom's greatest ever servants in a long list of stars and deserves all the plaudits he has received during a glittering 11-year career, which included five All-Ireland SFC triumphs.
"He will go down as one of the truly great Kerry players and as well as the contribution he made to the County," O'Connor told independent.ie.
"He was also a great clubman with both Dromid Pearses and South Kerry as well as with his School, Colaiste na Sceilge with whom he won an All-Ireland Vocational title in 2000 the year the school was opened.
"He was a fantastic player, even at a very young age and one of the great Kerry forwards of all time - there's no question about that. He had a remarkable resilience about him - he played right into November and December almost every year with Dromid and South Kerry and was a target for special attention in every game and the tougher it got, the better Declan would get!"
O'Connor singled out the display O'Sullivan gave in the 2006 All-Ireland SFC final as one that defined his resilience, scoring 1-2 in the comfortable victory over Mayo to silence the critics which questioned his form during the year.
"The way he handled himself in 2006 after losing his place on the team, the resilience he showed and the resolve to get back on the team and go on to lift the Sam Maguire was testament to his mental strength," he said.
"One of the highlights of my career, and indeed my life, was to see him bring Sam Maguire back to Dromid and South Kerry in 2006."
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