Ryan says Kildare must get a balance right

MICK O'DWYER was the one who started it all. Until Kildare got back on top in Leinster in 1998 under O'Dwyer's inspired management, all but one of the previous 15 titles had been shared by Meath and Dublin.

But their stranglehold was broken and not only did O'Dwyer remarkably achieve similar success with Laois, but Páidí Ó Sé (one of his star pupils) worked a bit of magic of his own with Westmeath last season.

The end result is that the Bank of Ireland championship in the province has never been so competitive.