Earley anxious over Kildare ‘hype’
The Lilywhites are favourites to defeat struggling Wexford on Saturday night and take their place among the last four in the provincial race.
Kildare were one of the top teams in this year’s national league and only narrowly missed out on promotion to Division 1.
They then overcame Offaly with ease in the championship while traditional heavyweights Meath are out of the race and holders Dublin, who beat Meath, aren’t exactly in top form.
That should all naturally lead to confidence in Kildare but Earley fears it may go a step further and breed over expectancy in a football mad county.
“It’s a funny county, they’re a bit success starved but Kieran (McGeeney) is probably the best man to keep us grounded,” said Earley.
“I think it’s up to myself and a few of the older lads to keep the younger guys grounded as well.
“They’re great guys and you can see that their only focus is playing Wexford on Saturday night, that’s all.
“Our focus is just Wexford, that’s all, I wasn’t at the (Dublin-Meath) match on Sunday and didn’t read the papers so no, just Wexford, that’s all we’re concentrating on.”
Former Kerry manager Páidí O Sé was famously criticised for pointing out how expectant Kingdom fans are but Earley said Kildare fans can get carried away just as easily by the first sign of a long summer.
“True, true, that’s very true,” he continued. “I suppose it’s 10 or 12 years since we’ve had any success and sometimes our own supporters are probably the worst.
“You have to be able to handle it and that’s part and parcel of it. You have to be mature and not let yourself buy into what everyone else is saying.”
Earley, 30, was in Dublin yesterday to pick up his GPA Opel Footballer of the Month award for May.
It was recognition of his starring role in the six point first-round defeat of Offaly – 12 years after his championship debut as a sub against Meath in 1997.
In the mean-time he’s had more than his fair share of injuries to contend with including a cancer setback in early 2002 which he bravely overcame in a matter of months.
“At the time I was 23 and you kind of feel invincible,” recalled Earley, now a Captain in the Army and based in Rathmines.
“You’re young and nothing fazes you. Looking back on it I suppose I just got on with it. I’m still very conscious of it, I have to be very conscious of it and I still get check-ups.
“But it’s something that happened and I learned from it and was lucky enough in the end.”
Earley is cautious approaching the Wexford game whom he describes as a ‘wounded animal’ having lost key forward Matty Forde to injury and endured a disastrous league campaign.
“They would probably have a bit more championship experience in big games than our players so we’re not taking anything for granted,” he said.
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