Leinster SFC Kildare v Westmeath: It's not even a year yet since Páidí Ó Sé had to muscle his way out of Croke Park, fending off the thousands of supporters who wanted to lay hands on the man who'd helped deliver the first Leinster football title to Westmeath.

Yesterday he stood outside the team dressingroom and you couldn't imagine a more contrasting scene.

So when Ó Sé stares off into the distance and reflects on this defeat to Kildare, it seem his thoughts are as much about the future as the present. Days like this certainly aren't worth travelling up from Ventry for.

"We're very disappointed," he starts, "but at the same time I don't want to take anything away from Kildare. I think they were the hungrier team on the day. Certainly we had a lot of chances in the second half to keep in touch, and maybe on other days we would have scored them. But I think the Kildare defence had the measure of some our forwards that we expected would do the business today.

"But I always felt their game against Wicklow would bring them on considerably, especially when they didn't play particularly well. They won a tight game and those battling qualities stood to them. Those qualities were there in abundance, while I found we were struggling from the back, and they were constantly putting us under pressure. Their aerial height was probably a telling factor as well.

"I know we were able to compete in a share of positions, but not in critical positions. So it will be difficult to rise again. But we won't address it this evening."

For Kildare manager Pádraig Nolan, the days of being best known as the successor to Mick O'Dwyer are finally over. Yesterday's performance probably marked his arrival more than any other day in his three-year term.

"We didn't make a very good start," he admits, "but we did get back into the game when Ronan Sweeney was sent off. And I thought that was harsh. That's putting it mildly. But these things happen in games. We've been through it before.

"But you don't do all the hard work, and then say if we've a fella sent off we're going to turn it on. There's a lot of very good footballers on this team with a huge amount of experience. And of course players would know what to do."

Certainly players like Glenn Ryan, Dermot Earley and Anthony Rainbow. While Nolan is careful not to single out the veterans, it's obvious their presence means a lot.

"I'm absolutely delighted for Glenn, but sure he'd been doing that for us right through the league. It's a team effort, and not just one person. And also Anthony Rainbow. But in my view they're legends, and always will be. It's not that long since I was out there supporting them. But there's young lads coming through now, and everybody is pushing together."

John Doyle also delivered a vintage day in the Kildare jersey, scoring 0-6 in total. "Westmeath were giving it everything," he said, "came at us hard and heavy in the first few minutes, and looked very dangerous. But when we lost the man we didn't panic. We faced a situation against Laois two years ago. We lost two men that day. Every lad knew they had a job to do."