Kildare great Johnny Doyle says that he would be happy to see his county win the Tailteann Cup final by the bare minimum against Limerick (Saturday, 2.30pm).
Speaking at an AIB event, the 2010 All-Star admitted that despite the Lilywhites’ status as favourites, he has concerns that there could be an upset if they put in a similar performance to their semi-final against Fermanagh.
“I’d say one point to spare will do me and we’ll all go home happy then. I think they’re capable of it, but I’d be worried if they produce the first 50 minutes or maybe 55 minutes that they did against Fermanagh.
“If they produce that we’re going to be in trouble, but the lads know that and hopefully they can build on it because there was a bit of pressure going into that game that, you know, we have to win in Croke Park.”
Kildare had lost five in a row at Croker until that Tailteann semi, with substitute Brian McLoughlin kicking five points off the bench to inspire his side to victory in a dour affair in terrible conditions.
Doyle, who was part of previous manager Glenn Ryan’s backroom team, says that he knows personally how good a footballer McLoughlin is and said that the forward should probably start to reward that performance.
“I know Brian very well, when I was involved in Maynooth he was involved and he’s a seriously good striker of the ball and I would be critical of him at times that he doesn’t shoot enough. Brian is a fantastic player and he was the reason Kildare are in the final be fair to him.
“I would think he’d be very close to starting and if not it won’t be too long before he sees action, because even through his underage career Brian, the bigger the stadium Brian just excels. He loves the pressure of it all.”
Relegation to Division Three last year and a loss to Laois in the Tailteann quarter-finals saw Ryan and his team step down following the 2024 season, replaced by Brian Flanagan for this season.
Doyle says Kildare have got a chance to rebuild now and lay the foundations for a return to the top competitions.
“Sometimes you do have to go back to consolidate. Division Three has given an opportunity for Brian to bring in players not into high pressure games.
“Playing in Division Three gave the lads a bit of chance and I suppose that helps players to get into the intercounty scene. We definitely want to be back in that All-Ireland series and playing the big teams and I think you get more players in that environment too.”
The poor results last year were heavily criticised, but Doyle notes that harsh criticism tended only to surface on social media and not in day-to-day life.
“A lot of people, including myself, maybe criticise club managers but when I meet them, I don’t. It’s easy to give out about them. But nobody ever came up to me and ate the head off me or anything like that. I’m sure there was plenty when they turned around the corner and the social media side of it is there.”
“It’s not something that would have bothered me too much. After the Laois game when they beat us in the Tailteann Cup, I remember my sister ringing me saying ‘are you all right?’ And I said ‘yeah no I’m okay I’m disappointed,’ and she was like, ‘it’s just they’re going mad online.’”
Their opponents this Saturday, Limerick, are big underdogs, but will bring plenty of confidence, having beaten both Wicklow in the semi-finals and Wexford in the Division Four final in GAA HQ so far this year.
Wicklow could well have won that match, with the lead changing hands down the stretch, but Limerick’s running game was particularly dangerous according to Doyle.
“I suppose it looked like for long periods that Wicklow would have enough. But the one thing that Limerick have is they run at teams and they ran at Wicklow. They have the forwards. I think Kildare are going to have to produce a big performance.”
