Battling victory overrides second half scare, says Quirke

One didn't need to inform Mike Quirke of fortunate Laois were to escape from Ennis with both points on Sunday afternoon. Contrasting halves threatened to derail his side for the second successive week but thankfully this time they dug deep to emerge with both points in a character-filled showing of defiance.

"Look, it was a very scratchy performance in the second half but we just saw it out. We were very happy with the first half display but we just didn't fire in the second half at all. There was a couple of tough calls and different bits and pieces but we never got going so we're really happy to get over the line,” admitted the Laois manager.

"We were very disappointed against Cavan last Sunday. We felt that we had done okay in the first half up there but then between the conditions and everything, we never got off the ground in the second half. That seems to be a recurring trend in the last two games but it's nice to be able to work on that stuff after a win as opposed to a loss.”

And it was a hard-earned victory that stemmed from an impressively slick opening period accentuated by Colm Murphy's 21st minute goal that helped Laois to an eight point cushion at one stage.

"The goal was crucial and we were probably a little unlucky not to add another in the second half when we hit the underside of the crossbar which would have put six points between the teams and a bit of breathing room.

“But there were swings and roundabouts all day. I wouldn't have been happy with a couple of non-calls that didn't go our way but that's always the way after a game like that. “Ultimately, it was always going to be a battle. Division 2 itself is a real battleground in every single game and from every single team so to come down here and get the two points is a great achievement for our fellas.”

How would you explain the inconsistency in both halves, was it merely a case of easing up on the gas after half-time?

"Not consciously obviously. We were trying to push on and create as big a gap as we could. But this is Clare's third one point game since the start of the league. They've won by a point and now lost two by a point so that's tough to take and I've played here enough with Kerry to know how competitive they are in this ground, how much pride they have and how much Colm [Collins] gets out of them so we were expecting nothing less than the battle we got really.

“But there's a lot of good teams in this division so to get to five points is a good boost. We've still got three games to go so let's see if we can push on and get a couple of more points, starting with Kildare at home next Saturday."