In the aftermath of Donie Buckley's sudden departure from Kerry's backroom team, Kieran Donaghy is doubtful that Peter Keane's decision will best serve the county's All-Ireland hopes. 

Echoing the sentiments of his former teammate Aidan O'Mahony, Kieran Donaghy expects Donie Buckley's exit to do Kerry more harm than good in the immediate future.

"Look, Donie is going to be a loss," he commented on Wednesday's OTB AM. "Any guy that chooses to have nothing else going on his life but to help Kerry will, of course, be a loss."

27 January 2019; Kerry selectors Maurice Fitzgerald, left, and Donie Buckley. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

Peter Keane's decision to relieve Donie Buckley of his duties on Kerry's backroom team marks the second time that the highly-rated GAA coach has departed the county in unexpected circumstances.

Drafted in by Jack O'Connor ahead of the 2011 season, Kerry came excruciatingly close to winning an All-Ireland title against Dublin in that year's final. Shortly thereafter, Buckley departed the Kingdom allegedly under something of a cloud and wound up spending the next number of years playing an instrumental role in Mayo's many near attempts at securing the same crown.

"He is, by his own design, a professional GAA coach," remarked Donaghy, who had worked under Buckley in 2011. "He goes off to Florida in the winter and visits college sports programs, heads off to Australia for two weeks and gets in with the Sydney Swans behind the scenes to see what they do. He is all-consumed by the game.

"I know the players liked him when I was playing, and I'm sure the current crop did too. He's a very enthusiastic guy with only Kerry in mind.

"He never does any interviews, doesn't talk about things behind the scene and keeps to himself."

3 August 2009; Kerry manager Jack O'Connor celebrates with Kieran Donaghy. Picture credit: Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE

While it remains unclear why Peter Keane has decided to go on without Buckley, Kieran Donaghy believes it is likely to work in favour of Kerry's opponents.

"Here we are with a guy who has a wealth of knowledge and we don't have him anymore," he noted. "Don't get me wrong, there are loads of experienced people there and Peter has been very successful in his managerial career, but it is disappointing that you'd lose a guy like that."

You can watch Kieran Donaghy's chat on OTB AM back in full here. 

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