Kildare’s defeat to Meath may prove the final failed attempt by Kieran McGeeney to bring the Leinster Championship back to the county, and they are entering the qualifiers with few positives and a tricky trip to Kingspan Breffni Park this weekend.
With so much focus on the final stage of Seanie Johnston’s transfer and the pairing of his former side with the Lilywhites, there has been little reflection on where it went wrong in Croke Park for McGeeney‘s side.
The obvious explanation was the weak performance of their forward line and a lack of decisiveness in their play, as a fired up Meath took advantage and had the momentum to secure a six-point win.
Bouncing back will be difficult and with so much attention on Kildare because of Johnston meeting his native county, there is plenty of pressure on them.
Cavan showed tremendous fight to earn a fantastic win against Fermanagh and will be high on confidence going into this game.
Regardless of what has been discussed in the media this week, there is no doubt the Johnston issue will be on the minds of some of the Cavan players.
There has to be a point to prove in some of their minds and there is no better chance. McGeeney’s task is to remind his players of the heights they can reach.
There was a lack of a proper connection between midfield and their front six against Meath.
Johnny Doyle didn’t have the major impact in the game and they failed to utilise Tomas O’Connor’s ability to dominate in that area of the field.
It’s great for Cavan to have the opportunity to face a side like Kildare and the experience will be a big help to their up-and-coming young players.
Kildare have enough talent to make it through; however, and maybe then they can focus on getting their season back on track by making news on the field.
Verdict: Kildare
