Kerry footballers suffered a major setback last night when county captain and star centrefielder Darragh Ó Sé was sent off early in a club match. Ó Sé was shown a straight red card for striking an opponent during the championship fixture between An Gaeltacht and Austin Stacks.

A straight red earns a suspension of four weeks and this means that he is almost certain to miss the All-Ireland semi-final against Cork next Sunday week.

This will create a big headache for Páidí Ó Sé and his selectors. Centrefield has been a problem area for them in that it has been difficult to find a partner for the outstanding captain. Donal Daly is the man in possession and among the candidates for the other berth will be Séamus Scanlan, Eoin Brosnan and perhaps Séamus Moynihan, who switched there in the Munster semi-final also against Cork before reverting to his customary role at full back.