We must start beating the top teams

When Laois came within a couple of minutes and a couple of points of beating Galway in the Leinster quarter-final a few weeks ago (1-22 to 0-23) the general consensus was the westerners had regressed in the last year, would be eaten alive by Kilkenny in the semi-final (this Sunday in Tullamore, 4pm).

Last year, then as reigning Leinster champions, Galway had again met Laois in the quarter-final, were again truly tested but eventually won by seven points (2-17 to 1-13). The reaction was that this was an aberration, that Laois has played way above themselves, a reaction seemingly confirmed when Laois were subsequently hammered by Clare in the qualifiers while Galway went on to beat Kilkenny in the Leinster semi-final, though lost their crown to Dublin.

A very shallow consensus, says Laois manager Seamus ‘Cheddar’ Plunkett, unfair dismissal of the efforts of both his own side and of Galway. “If that’s how people are thinking they’re making a mistake, though I’m probably too close to the setup to be objective. We put a huge effort into that game, felt we could beat Galway but came up short. I’d like to think regardless of what team we were playing we’d give that same close game to anyone.”