'We have to quickly get back on the horse'- Laois Senior football manager Justin McNulty

Laois were second-best all over the pitch on Saturday evening in Newbridge as Kildare sent them back down the M7 with a 12-point defeat in Round 4 of Division 3 of the Allianz Football League.

After the game, Laois manager Justin McNulty made no excuses and added that he might have needed more time to digest the disappointment and performance that his team put in against Kildare.

“I think I’ll be needing more time. It's a very disappointing result, a very disappointing performance. I think we didn't get off the starting blocks as a team. We were misfiring in most positions on the pitch. We have to quickly get back on the horse because we have an important match next week and we can't spend too much time in a post-mortem scenario beating ourselves up about what went wrong and why it went wrong. We've got to figure out how we get ourselves ready for a big game next week against Antrim and that's where our focus needs to shift on to now,” he said.

McNulty did have some positives to take from the game however with his side showing some sort of resolve in the second-half to halt the Kildare onslaught. He credited his players for keeping their heads up even when the result was known.

“It could have been an annihilation, but credit to the guys, they kept fighting. When things were going wrong in so many capacities and so many facets of the game, the fellas could have just thrown their heads up and said, no, that's not for me but they did restore a degree of respectability about the scoreline by keeping going and they deserve credit for that. That's what we've got to focus on, focus on that character the guys demonstrated. The boys are all hurting, they're hugely disappointed. It's never nice to get a thrashing, it's still a thrashing by your neighbours and your rivals, Kildare. We know and the team knows, they didn't do themselves justice tonight and now the job is rectifying that for next week,” McNulty said.

Kildare dominated from throw-in until the final whistle with McNulty confessing that his side probably helped them in some regard.

“They are a quality team, well coached, well drilled, athletic, strong, fit footballers all over the pitch, so they had a complete performance this evening. Definitely, we allied that by lots of our play and we weren't clinical at all in terms of when the game was still early doors, we had chances to be close and we didn't take them. Kildare were vastly superior this evening, full credit to them and they deserved their victory,” he said.

Read next: Laois Senior footballers second-best as Kildare cruise in Newbridge

Laois lost St Joseph’s star James Kelly right before throw-in and McNulty feels that his injury disoriented his team somewhat.

“It was literally a few minutes before throw-in and that was a bit disorientating for the team. He's got a quad pull and could be a doubt now for a few games, so that's something we've got to look at. That was a bit disruptive, but these things happen in football, you've got to find a way to deal with it without it disrupting us too much,” McNulty added.

McNulty admitted Laois were second best in all areas, from kick-outs to scoring efficiency. Despite the one-sided contest, he praised his players’ resilience in fighting to the final whistle, even as Kildare’s dominance was clear on the scoreboard.

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“They were effective at holding us off, to keep those break-ball areas free for them to own. We weren't as effective off our kick-outs as we need to be and we weren't as effective off their kick-outs. They won their own kick-outs and they won ours as well, so you don't win too many games in that scenario. They were very effective at creating scoring opportunities from their possessions, we weren't. They were very effective at scoring their scoring chances and we weren't. They won the kick-out battle, they won the scoring battle, they won the possession battle, and they won most battles over the park.

“So given that, for our fellas to have stayed in the game, they deserve credit for fighting right to the end and keeping the degree of respectability, even though the margin of defeat is not something any team can be proud of,” he said.

Laois haven’t got much time to feel sorry for themselves with Andy McEntee’s Antrim side set to travel to Portlaoise on Saturday.

“We have very little time to lick our wounds and feel sorry for ourselves. We need to get back on the horse, refocus, and build towards next weekend,” McNulty commented.

McNulty gave some young players a chance off the bench, emphasising the value of the experience. He stressed that they now understand the standard required at this level and the demands of inter-county football.

“It's a great experience for the young fellas who know the standard that's required at this level and they know that to be an inter-county footballer, this is what's demanded of you and if you can't meet that level, you’ve no call being an inter-county footballer,” he ended.