Looking ahead to their second game against Laois in the Leinster round-robin series, Meath manager Martin Ennis revealed that his side will "fancy their chances against anybody" as they look to secure a quarter-final spot.
It’s 13 years since Meath hurlers last competed in Leinster and, despite conceding a goal to Kerry with just seconds gone in Navan on Sunday, they recovered and ultimately ran out six-point winners.
The O’Moore County visit Páirc Tailteann next Sunday – an encounter that Ennis is clearly looking forward to.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport, he said: "We know plenty about Laois as some of our lads know some of their guys from playing with Carlow IT.
"I hope we can get the same support we got today for what should be a cracker of a game. As of now we fancy our chances against anybody."
"We have put a lot of work in since last November and I’m glad it’s paying off."
At one point in the second half, the Royals were nine points up against the Kingdom, not that Ennis was aware of that stat.
"I didn't even know we were nine up, I didn't look at the scoreboard," he added.
"We were never going to dominate Kerry for 70 minutes. We dropped a man back and held out.
"Overall we are delighted with the result and the performance even though some of our top lads didn't perform up to expectation but other guys stepped up.
"We have put a lot of work in since last November and I’m glad it’s paying off."
