Winds of change give Kildare plenty of hope heading into league final showdown with Galway

It's five years since a piece of significant silverware made its way across the border from Dublin to Kildare in the clutches of a Kildare senior football manager, but today presents a perfect opportunity for Cian O'Neill and his young side to emulate the success of 2012 and land a trophy in GAA headquarters. Kildare's last significant success at senior level was when they won the Division 2 league title - the same prize on offer this Sunday - in April 2012, and that win represented a serious landmark for the Lilywhites under Kieran McGeeney as they sealed a first national trophy in 84 years. While one would have hoped that such a win would spark an upturn in fortunes for the footballers it was quite the opposite, with Kildare eventually limping out of the championship that summer at the quarter-final stage thanks to a 13-point trouncing at the hands of Cork. The ship was steadied somewhat the following year when Kildare finished third in Division 1, but a forgettable championship campaign was again on the cards as a hammering against Dublin in the Leinster semi-final was followed by a qualifier defeat to Tyrone. That marked the end of McGeeney's six years in charge of the county, and the beginning of a rather disastrous two-year period under Jason Ryan. The expected initial bounce provided by the new manager never came to pass, and Kildare were soon on their way to successive relegations under the Waterford native as they found themselves parked in Division 3 by the beginning of the 2016 season. The inevitable decision to part ways with Ryan came in the aftermath of the 2015 championship, before Cian O'Neill was installed as the new manager over that winter. It was the first time that a Kildare man had occupied the role since current Sarsfields manager John Crofton did so in 2006, and improvements have gradually ramped up over the past 18 months. The task for the Moorefield native in 2016 was simple; gain promotion to Division 2 and be competitive in the championship. The league campaign last spring was consistently inconsistent, with the only constant being the plague of injuries that the Lilywhites seemed to be suffering week on week. That ultimately had a bearing on what followed in the championship, as O'Neill turned to a highly defensive style that yielded just 1-20 across two Leinster Championship games against Wexford and Westmeath, before the shackles were released against Offaly for an uplifting win. The defeat against Mayo was nothing to really drop the heads about, and attention soon turned to the 2017 campaign and whether or not Kildare could survive with the step up in class to Division 2. Having started off with a panel of 50 players at the beginning of 2016, O'Neill has been able to refine his selection and work with a much more closely knit group for the entirety of the 2017 season so far. The manager now knows what is close to his best team, with numbers 1-8 never changing between rounds one and six of the National League, though injuries to Daniel Flynn, Ben McCormack, Chris Healy and Neill Flynn have led to a shuffling of the pack up front. He has really stamped his own mark on this team, and the fact that Ollie Lyons is the only surviving member from the side that started in Kildare's last Division 2 final appearance five years ago shows the changing times in Kildare football and just how far a young team has come in a short time. Peter Kelly and Emmet Bolton are still on the panel, but the Celbridge man is the only one of that trio who will be starting and is also the only outfield player over the age of 30 in the first XV. The Kildare team that beat Tyrone in the Division 2 NFL final Shane Connolly Peter Kelly, Hugh McGrillen, Ollie Lyons Emmet Bolton, Morgan O’Flaherty, Gary White Mick Foley, Padraig O’Neill Eoghan O’Flaherty, Mikey Conway, John Doyle Alan Smith, Tomas O’Connor, James Kavanagh [caption id="attachment_154935" align="alignnone" width="766"] Kildare captain Eoin Doyle and Galway forward Shane Walsh at the launch of the National League finals[/caption] Some silverware would be magnificent for Kildare, though it wouldn't be the end of the world to leave Croke Park empty handed either. Galway probably need the win that little bit more; they haven't been blessed with much luck on their trips to headquarters in the past 15 years as their last victory came in the 2001 All-Ireland final against Meath. That means they'll be looking to end a run of 11 games without a win in the capital, so their need is great. While it's never a wise idea to get too optimistic about Kildare's chances in finals, there has been a real sense of consistency and steel about this group of players in the early months of the season. They have overcome numerous types of opponents; the highly defensive Down, a free-flowing and energetic Clare, and a relatively confident Cork side who were still considered favourites for promotion when they pitched up in Newbridge in the second round of the league. “We learned a lot from that match, not just with our squad, but how they[Galway] played as well, and there’s nothing like being there to see a team play. It’s up to us to get the analysis right and the team prepped for Croke Park next week,” said Cian O'Neill after last Sunday's defeat in Salthill. Galway may have shown their hand in the desperate search for victory, but Kildare remain somewhat of a mystery to the Tribesmen. Still, identifying problems is not the same as rectifying them, though it is the essential first step. Galway will look to use the wide open spaces of Croke Park and set the likes of Johnny Heaney, Eamonn Brannigan and Shane Walsh all hurtling towards the Kildare goal at speed, and if there is one aspect of the Lilywhites' game that has caused some concern this year it is their vulnerability when they lose the ball and are attacked on the counter. Shutting down the Galway runners at source is always much easier said than done, but Kildare have overcome each step in the league so far this year with a combination of style and growing maturity, so there is a great sense of hope that we could be watching Eoin Doyle making his way up the steps of the Hogan and collecting some silverware on Sunday afternoon.