Kerry FC has announced the signing of Stephen McCarthy ahead of the 2023 SSE Airtricity First Division campaign which gets underway this Friday.
The 24-year-old striker has played his whole career with Kerry District League side Killarney Celtic winning multiple league titles and cups along with appearing in various FAI Junior Cup encounters. Although without League of Ireland experience, Steven has had a good handle on the game having first donned the green and white hoops of Killarney Celtic at 6 years of age. Stephen becomes Kerry FC’s 29th and final signing ahead of the season starting on Friday night.
Speaking on his signing, Stephen McCarthy said “I’m delighted to sign for Kerry FC. It is a great opportunity for me to go and test myself at this level. I’m looking forward to the season opener on Friday night and hopefully, we can start our first-ever campaign with a win.
First-Team Manager Billy Dennehy said “Steven is a player who has spent his whole career playing local football in the Munster Senior League and with Killarney Celtic where he has done really well. But I think Steven is a player that has the ability to play at a higher level. For me, when I see players like that, there are one or two questions I must ask. Are they comfortable at the level they are at or have they never had the opportunity to go onto the next level? For me, seeing the way Steven has been training and working the last couple of weeks has shown me that he does have that ambition to play at a higher level but never had the option here in Kerry. I am absolutely delighted to give him that opportunity now. I think his technical ability is something we have seen already and I think the fitter he gets and more accustomed to our style of play, he will only improve in the coming years. I think he has done well for Killarney Celtic over a large number of years so we are very thankful to them for keeping him involved in the game and giving him the platform to develop his talents over a number of years.”
