THAT WILL DO
KILDARE 0-16 CARLOW 1-6
GAA O’BYRNE CUP
In their first outing since their final Championship game against Kerry on August 4, which meant they were only permitted to resume full collective training last weekend.
But Kildare were never troubled at rainy and windswept St Conleth’s Park as they built an early advantage and comfortably held Carlow, who knocked them out of this year’s Leinster Championship, at arm’s reach thereafter.
“I’m very happy just first and foremost with the performance,” said Lilies boss O’neill.
“We’ve had three sessions Saturday, Tuesday, Thursday - so I think to clip 16 points and probably disappointed with a few others, we probably could have done a bit better.
“Against a team that plays quite defensively and does it well, you have to be happy with that so I’m delighted with the players and particularly the young guys who pulled a senior jersey on for the first time, that was fantastic.”
Kildare held Carlow scoreless for the opening 25 minutes, by which time they had already accumulated 0-8 themselves as the game never threatened to take off as a contest.
The impact of the experimental rules wasn’t minimal but neither was it noticeable.
Interestingly, Jimmy Hyland (above), easily Kildare’s smallest forward, kicked three first half points having made offensive marks on each occasion, an indicator that the benefits of this particular rule won’t be the pre- KILDARE: M Donnellan; M Dempsey, M Barrett, M Hyland; C O’donoghue, E Doyle, K Cribbin; K Feely (0-1), P Cribbin; D Slattery, E O’flaherty (0-2), C Hartley (0-1); J Hyland (0-3), B Mccormack (0-2), N Flynn (0-6, 0-5f). Subs: T Moolick (0-1) for Feely (HT), P Fogarty for Mccormack (HT), P Nash for O’flaherty (59), B Mcloughlin for Hyland (60), J Gibbons for Slattery (61), DJ Earley for O’donoghue (70+3), J O’toole for Hyland (70+3), A Tyrrell for Dempsey (70+3), D Malone for Hartley (70+3). CARLOW: C Kearney; C Lawlor, S Redmond, J Murphy; K Nolan, C Crowley, D Lunney (1-0); B Murphy (0-2), S Doyle; C Doyle, D Foley (0-3f), L Walker; C Crowley, D Moran, D St Ledger (0-1f). Subs: R Kane for Crowley (25), J Moore for Nolan (48), J Clarke for Kane (48), E Mcgrath for S Doyle (59), N Lowry for Crowley (63), J Kennedy for Lawlor (70+3), D Thompson for C Doyle (70+3). REFEREE: G Hurley (Westmeath). serve of physically imposing fullforwards. Kildare’s Ben Mccormack was black-carded in the 10th minute for a body check on Kieran Nolan, meaning that he had to leave the field for 10 minutes, but it didn’t disrupt the home side’s early rhythm.
By then they were already 0-3 to 0-0 in front and they added five more points without reply before Carlow opened their account through a Daniel St Ledger free in the 25th minute.
Despite Carlow welcoming back Brendan Murphy, they struggled badly at midfield as Kildare, playing with the elements, lorded the midfield exchanges with Paul Cribbin particularly prominent.
Eoghan O’flaherty was impressive on his return, kicking two first half points, while the inside trio of Hyland, Mccormack and Neil Flynn accounted for all but three of Kildare’s first half tally as they led 0-11 to 0-2 at the break.
The sideline ball rule - which dictates that kicks must go forward unless inside the 20m line - played something of a part in the game’s only goal, which threw Carlow a lifeline five minutes into the second half.
Murphy pumped in a long ball from the sideline, which Darragh Foley broke to Darren Lunney to tap into the net.
Kildare took a while to get going in the second half and scored only one point scored between half-time and the 54th minute before Neil Flynn’s free saw them hit four without reply to move well clear again.
There was just one free awarded for four consecutuve handpasses - conceded by Kildare’s John O’toole in the second half - while there were seven minutes of injury time after what appeared to a serious neck injury to Carlow’s Conor Lawlor.