FOLEY READY FOR FINAL CHALLENGE

JASON FOLEY never gets too high with victories, or too low with defeats.

- BY JOHN O'DOWD

His profession has given him a deeper perspective on football, and on life in general.

The Kerry fullback is an SNA in a school in Milltown. He absolutely loves his job. He loves the children, and the challenges that they face every single day.

As a result, whether basking in the glory of marshalling Galway's Damien Comer in the 2022 All-Ireland final, or the pain of defeat to Dublin in 2023 and Armagh last year, Foley remains grounded.

"I wanted to do teaching initially and then kind of fell into early years in childhood studies in UCC and really enjoyed it," he explained.

"I was advised to go into it. I was told that I was compassionate towards children with special needs, on placements and stuff like that. I really enjoyed helping children develop, and am very, very lucky to be involved in it.

"I think it puts great perspective on things when I go into work on a Monday morning, and see what struggles they have, or what struggles parents have.