Young: Kerry stars set for tough week

KILLIAN YOUNG predicts a ‘hell for leather’ warm weather training camp after Kerry’s NFL Division One final defeat to Derry on Sunday.

Agreeing some will view the loss as a wake-up call Young expects next week’s spell in Portugal will be: “Hell for leather. I’d say it will be a lot tougher than if we had won. Now, I’d say we have a tough week ahead of us!’” However, the Renard star, Young Footballer of the Year last season, has more important things on his mind this week as he leads the Kerry U21 side into an All-Ireland against Kildare in Thurles on Saturday.

In line with the stated policy of the senior management (for all of the U21 players in the squad), Young played just the opening two rounds of the League, following which his only other involvement was as a substitute in the Derry game.

Saying that he could never have envisaged the northerners winning after the way they had struggled for the opening 20 minutes, he agrees that the outcome is of no real consequence to Kerry.

On the one hand, he recalled that not many people gave them a real chance of winning because so many regulars were unavailable.

“Getting to the final was a great achievement. It didn’t really matter what the result was going to be. It was a very good campaign otherwise,” he commented.

Meanwhile, Young is relishing the opportunity of playing in the weekend decider with Kerry seeking their first title in a decade.

Young’s Kildare counterpart Gary White emphasises Glenn Ryan’s impact since he was appointed manager (after Kieran McGeeney told the County Board that he would not be able to take over both the seniors and U21’s).

And, like Young, he points to the importance of both selection committees liaising in terms of players involved in both squads ‘not being burned out’ in training.

“Glenn is an inspirational figure in Kildare, everyone listens to what he says. The thing that got us this far is how close we are. We were away for a few weekends and we really bonded well. We fight very well for one another and that’s the reason why we are in the final.

“He remembered back to the first time the management brought the players together, how inspiringly Ryan outlined his ambitions.

“He said our goal is an All-Ireland final. I think that was a big part in us winning Leinster — the fact that we were looking to get to the final. Before, Kildare teams might have been happy with a Leinster title and anything extra would be a bonus.”