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31 Oct 2025
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31 Oct 2025
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Kildare manager Brian Dowling and his son Tadhg, nine years, after the Joe McDonagh Cup final match between Kildare and Laois at Croke Park, Photo by Ray McManus/Sportsfile
The smile on the feasóg of Kildare manager, Brian Dowling, when he met the press under the Cusack Stand following Kildare's historic eleven point win over Laois on Sunday said it all.
Glowing, beaming, describe it how you like but it certainly was happiness personified.
In this his second year in charge and having won the Christy Ring Cup in his first season, he now adds the Joe McDonagh Cup in his second year.
Absolutely astonishing.
“I'm blow away, I have no words, I just can't believe it, it is just unbelievable what this group of players have done” he said.
We challenged them (the players), at the start of the season, saying if we could retain our Joe McDonagh Cup status.
“Then we asked, if they could do better and the answer was unanimous, yes we could, our aim was to get to the last two and if you get to the final then anything is possible.”
The manager said that “you are always worried in the build-up to a final, have you done things right, we had a media night on Tuesday night, you have to promote the game but that was it and after that we just concentrated on the game.
“The first half was not out best 35 minutes but then we were playing a good team in Laois, you are not going to be on top the whole match but once we got ahead in the second half we powered home from there.”
Asked what he said to his players at half time, the manager said “very similar to what we said at half-time in O'Moore Park, 'we were not happy' we didn't thing we were flowing, we weren't working the ball up the pitch like we do, we panicked a little, long deliveries too far out, we know we are a really fit team, we have to keep going, we knew we would get chances, we let in a goal early in the second half, not the start we wanted against Laois but we have had set-backs before, we stuck with it and got our reward.
"Just trying to process the result was the immediate response from captain Rian Boran adding “we had some real leaders out there today, lads took responsibility, even after the goal went it; lads immediately stepped up, conceding didn't shake us too much, we just stuck to our hurling, stuck to our processes and thankfully it paid off.”
PICTURES: Hurling heaven as Kildare win Joe McDonagh Cup amid sensational scenes
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