FOLLOWING A weekend of high drama, Kildare return to the top flight after three seasons of missing out. Being Kildare, they had to shatter the nerves of their supporters in doing so, relying on a 74th-minute penalty from John Doyle to snatch that late 2-12 to 0-18 draw with Galway.

As Kildare men hugged on the field afterwards, it was notable Kieran McGeeney sought out Alan Mulholland for a few words. The Kildare manager was pleased at what amounted to an escape from the second tier but afterwards, he reasoned that it probably doesn’t make a great deal of difference in the bigger picture.

“You know my feeling on that,” he reflected. “Even when Kildare came down to the division it was One B. And then it was One A and One B . . . I know there are a few managers who think you have to be in Division One to push on. I am not so sure. Take the top three teams out of it and there are eight or nine then who, depending on the day and confidence and form, are all at the same level.

“It is nice, like. It is great to get another day and it is a big distance between now and the championship against Offaly. And Offaly have started to get their ship in order too so that game will be a big help to us.”

Still, after three seasons exploring the delights of the provinces, the prospect of mixing it with Dublin under lights or Kerry in Killarney must be pleasing. Apart from anything else, the manner of the draw did much to end the suspicion Kildare are just an unlucky team.

As soon as Doyle stepped up to take the kick, there was a sense of inevitability about what happened next. “Coolness personified,” agreed McGeeney. “Ah, cometh the hour cometh the man. In fairness Mikey [Conway] had a bit of a debate with him in there but the elder man was always going to win that way.”

It was notable Emmet Bolton, the Kildare right half back, finished with 1-1 from play. He also had a 71st-minute half-shot at goal blocked and was back in the Galway square three minutes later for the play that led to the all-important penalty. The play-everywhere nature of the Kildare half-backs is nothing new but the attacking contribution from defenders on both sides in Salthill was notable.

“The game is changing, contrary to some of our past greats who think it hasn’t been any good since they retired: that is what it is,” McGeeney reasoned. “I think our full-back line scored nine points in the championship last year. You look at the likes of Marc Ó Sé and Kieran McGrath there today, he came out like a bullet. Those type of players are the way the game is played whether people like it or not . . . they are class acts, hard to stop, keep possession, are very fast, they are good on the ball. So everyone has to be able to play everywhere. See [Pádraic] Joyce comes on at number 11, ends up at 14 and ends up in the half back. Every player has to be able to accommodate himself in every position.”

Kildare may have been lucky to get the result but in the greater scheme of things, the game owed them a break. Now, they have a league final against Tyrone in Croke Park and a pre-championship training campaign in Portugal.

“Time will tell,” McGeeney said when asked about the significance of that camp.

“If you don’t win, people will be telling you that it was all for nothin’, just a tan. If we do well, maybe everyone will be doing it again.”