Laois have three slight injury concerns in the lead up to Saturday evening’s showdown with Kildare. Both Denis Booth and Peter O’Leary have picked up quite similar slight hamstring injuries in preparation for the game, with MJ Tierney also struggling in training with a niggling groin complaint. Justin McNulty is confident however that all three players, who are sure to feature against the Lillywhites, will be “good to go”.
“Training has been going very well. We have had some very positive sessions in the last number of weeks and, although three injuries is more than enough to have in any panel, I am very hopeful that they will be ready and fit to face Kildare” said McNulty on Monday afternoon.
All three players will be needed for what will be a match that will probably define the Laois footballers’ season. There are a whole host of teams that the Laois supporter would have preferred to have seen their county drawn against in the next round, thinking it may be a little too soon to face the Lillywhites. But the same can be said of Kildare supporters, as there were some far easier possible ties available for last year’s beaten semi-finalists. A win against the County’s neighbouring rivals will surely consign the Dublin defeat to history, and the Laois manager is under no illusions as to the scale of the challenge.
“Getting Kildare is a very very tough draw. They are a quality side, with top quality players all over the pitch. Over the past number of years they have gained a reputation of being somewhat like specialists in the qualifying rounds too, and I think they were very unlucky last year not to go further. That said, this is a local derby, and we are really looking forward to it. A lot of people expect Kildare to turn us over on the day, but I think we have every chance” said McNulty.
“Our own lads were able to throw the shackles off against Tipperary, and show their potential to some degree. Hopefully they can do the same against Kildare, but they are much tougher opposition than Tipperary. We will have to try and curtail Kildare as much as possible”.
Does this mean that Laois will be given license to play attacking football or simply try and sit back and try to contain the Kildare threat? It’s hard to glean from the brief conversation with McNulty, but one would hope it’s the former rather than the latter.
Saturday’s clash will be an intriguing affair for many reasons, one aspect being the re-acquaintance of old friends McNulty and Kildare Manager Kieran McGeeney. The pair’s lifelong friendship will take on a whole new dynamic thanks to the lottery of the qualifier draw. They first played football together at school level with their home club Mullaghbawn, then they lined out shoulder to shoulder in Abbey CBS Newry. Years on the inter-county scene together with Armagh was followed by another club spell together with Na Fianna in Dublin. It must feel very strange after all these years for one to try and plot the downfall of the other.
McGeeney drew first blood when the sides met in Newbridge last March, but now the two will face each other for the first time ever in a championship encounter, with both men desperately hoping to keep their respective sides’ summers alive.
“On one side, it’s not ideal. He (McGeeney) is one of my best friends. I admire him totally, as a person, as a player, and as a coach. He has achieved some unbelievable things with Kildare so far as a manager. But on the other side it’s just irrelevant. We are both here to win, nothing else”.
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