Former Kildare All Star Johnny Doyle believes this weekend's Leinster Football Final clash with Dublin may have come a year too early for his county's young crop of players.
Kildare booked their place in their first Leinster final in eight years after a convincing 2-16 to 0-13 semi-final victory over Meath.
They also impressed in their win against Laois in the quarter-finals and those wins along with a strong league campaign has seen optimism rise in the county.
However Doyle admits that Dublin's awesome dismantling of Westmeath in their semi-final was a wake-up call for The Lilywhites and he's struggling to see how his side can overcome the Dubs.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport, he said: "After the Meath game we were certainly coming away with a pep in our step after two good performances and we were sort of getting excited about this Kildare team.
"With two quick promotions they’ve ticked a lot of boxes but we were brought down to earth after that Westmeath display that Dublin put in. The most loyal Kildare supporter came crashing down to earth after that.
"It’s a difficult one, you have to strip away all that’s going on in your heart and what you’d love for the team and for Kildare supporters.
"The Leinster Championship needs someone to challenge Dublin, now whether Kildare are fit to do that remains to be seen."
Doyle admitted that his heart has been ruling his head in the build-up for Sunday’s clash at Croke Park, and in the cold analysis of the game, he can’t see past a Dublin win.
"When you do strip away all that emotion and look at it in the cold light of day, I’m not getting anything there that tells me that Kildare are going to beat Dublin on Sunday.
"The two teams they beat along the way are gone out of the Championship. Meath might feel a little bit unlucky to be gone, but they’re gone," he added.
However even if Kildare are unable to overcome their neighbours this weekend, Doyle sees a bright future for what is a very young side.
"They certainly have the talent there that I hope can put a challenge up to Dublin and really go at them and have a good go.
"They’re a young team and I think it might be just a year or so too soon for some of these guys. A lot of our main players are on 23, 24 years of age.
"It’s a huge battle but that’s the great thing about sport. There’s always the David and Goliath story and you’d love one on Sunday but it’s a monumental challenge in front of Kildare."
