29 September 2004 "No fear of complacency" States Kildare Captain Brianne Leahy Share this Article 0 0 0 Shares! 0 Shares! No fear of complacency promises Leahy By Brendan Coffey Click on above image to go to web site IF Brianne Leahy leads Kildare to the All-Ireland summit on Sunday, she’ll have the bonus of a birthday celebration two days later. However, it’s most definitely the former and not the latter that concerns the Kildare All-Star, who’ll be 23. “No it didn’t really have any impact, and I didn’t even think of it on the day” says Leahy of the coincidence on her birthday colliding with last year’s All-Ireland final date against Donegal. So 12 months on from their second All-Ireland defeat in three seasons, Leahy is resolute in not looking back on the disappointment of that occasion. “We don’t want to dwell on it really, you know you shouldn’t analyse it too much. Donegal just performed much better on the day, whereas we didn’t perform as well. But you know it can be something to build on.” And Kildare have built on that defeat by returning to Croke Park for their third final appearance. Third time lucky perhaps but luck will hardly come into it for a battle weary Kildare, who will surely view this latest All-Ireland quest as a task to be completed as much as it will be a great occasion for all involved. It has been a dramatic 12 months for the Lady Lilies and if overcoming last year’s defeat wasn’t difficult enough, they were shocked to the core when manager, Sean ‘Goggy’ Delaney died suddenly earlier in the year. “Yeah, Goggy was a big shock to us. But we’ve come through a lot, you know we pulled together and got through it, but it was a big shock.” This is a strong-willed bunch of players and Leahy believes there is a great spirit within the camp. “When the going gets tough, you know we’re able to step it up a notch. I think we’ve a much better team this year, we’ve a good mix of players – players with experience from last year and then a few of the younger ones that have come in.” So will Kildare fans travel in confidence? Brianne leading Kildare in the Parade before last years final Kildare have the experience and have the players, and they have the confidence it seems, but they’re by no means complacent. “I’d say I’m confident, but we’re not cocky. You know it might be easy to get complacent, but we saw what happened with Allenwood and Sarsfields.” Allenwood’s shock win over Sarsfields – perennial championship favourites for the men’s senior football crown – may well serve the Kildare ladies notice of the dangers of complacency and though they are expected to win against Sligo, Leahy is weary of them rising to the occasion. “I think Sligo will be very hungry, and they’ll be highly motivated, you know, listening to people saying that Kildare are going to win. They could come down and really rise to the occasion and we have to expect that. Just because we have lost two All-Irelands doesn’t mean we have a divine right to the silverware. Nobody has a divine right. We might deserve it but it’s all about who’s hungriest for it.” Such wisdom is what you might expect in a captain, one who has lifted the Leinster Cup on five successive occasions, but it’s easy to forget that Brianne is only just approaching 23, the gifted midfielder having just finished a science degree in NUI Maynooth. The blend of youth and experience is apparent but it’s more a case of the experienced youth and the youth, such is age profile of Ladies football. Kildare arrive at this final via wins over Wexford in the Leinster final, and Armagh in the All-Ireland semi-final. Both games were tough fixtures for the Lilies and Leahy feels that the Armagh game was in many ways the making of this side. “It was really tough against Armagh, you know. The conditions were terrible, and it was just a total team effort. I mean we had 13 on the pitch at one stage.” Kildare had eight points to spare in that semi-final win, but they had even less to spare against Wexford, who gave them a closer than expected contest. One factor may have been Kildare’s lack of competitive fixtures, with a number of facile wins in the Leinster championship round robin structure. “Yeah those games (in round robin series) don’t really help, because we’re a junior team playing other sides’ second teams, but if we’re playing senior next year, those games will be a big help to us.” Diplomatic and sensible, the Grange star displays all the traits you’d want in a captain and leader. She admits now, however, that she just wants the day to arrive. “Training’s eased down; we’re just doing a lot of sprints and working as a unit. We’re training three nights a week and things are going well. “Waiting is the hardest part at the moment and everybody’s just really looking forward to the day. It should be a great day. We have the players to do it and we just have to go out there and perform.” This article was kindly given to us by The Kildare Nationalist Newspaper Share this Article 0 0