Kildare boss McGeeney has high praise for tougher than ever Limerick

Maurice Horan would not be drawn on his future as Limerick manager as his two-year term came to an end but if he is agreeable, the Mayo native is sure to be asked to continue.

His Shannonsiders continue to prove doughty opponents and Kieran McGeeney remarked that with an increased mobility, they were probably tougher now than ever before.

The Kildare boss was impressed by the likes of Ian Ryan, Ger Collins, Stephen Lucey, Eoghan O’Connor and Johnny McCarthy.

McGeeney said: “You wonder why they’re sitting in Division 4 when they can play football of that calibre. And when they play football of that calibre, it’s not by accident. They’ve done it the last four or five years. They’ve done it under Mickey Ned O’Sullivan and they’ve done it since. You have to respect it. They work hard, they hit hard and they’re good on the ball.”

There is a very obvious explanation for this year’s league travails though, and whoever is in situ next year will be hoping to have better luck with injuries than was the case this time around. How do we build on (this)? It’s hard to go back and look at the league but that’s the way it is” said Horan.

“We were missing Johnny McCarthy, Paudie Browne, Seanie Buckley, Jim O’Donovan — eight lads missed four games or more. We can’t miss them — they are the backbone of the team and that’s the problem we have. We are very dependent on six or seven guys and if two or three are missing we are in trouble. As for me, my two year term is up, but I haven’t thought about it (my future). Once you are in the qualifiers you don’t have time to think about anything else.”

McGeeney never lost faith in his players’ ability to rescue themselves from a dicey situation. “You believe in them. They’ve come back in the last minutes of games before. They’ve shown character.”