Flynn steps away for 2019 as O'Neill calls in 15 players to bolster Kildare panel ahead of new season

There is plenty of change confirmed for the Kildare panel ahead of the start of the 2019 season, with some major departures and some eye-catching newcomers among the talking points.

Cian O’Neill revealed his 39-man panel on Sunday, which has a total of eleven players from this year’s All-Ireland U20 winning Kildare side included. In total, there are 15 players named in the panel who weren’t part of Kildare’s league or championship campaigns this year.

There is a major loss to the Kildare forward line however, with O’Neill confirming that Daniel Flynn will not be part of the panel for the 2019 season.

The forward line will also be missing Niall Kelly and Eanna O’Connor for a good portion of next year. Kelly is currently travelling and won’t be back for at least three months, while O’Connor has been consistently hampered by injury and will be taking some time out to work back to full fitness.

Flynn is currently studying for a Masters in Maynooth University and will finish that in May, and he has indicated that he hopes to go travelling before he settles into full-time work.

The Kildare management team made every effort to keep the two-time All-Star nominee involved, but O’Neill outlined that Flynn feels now is the right time for him to take a year out from the Lilywhites.

“Obviously, Daniel has been a big part of my tenure, and particularly in the last couple of years he has come into his own,” said O’Neill.

“He has grown and developed year on year, and I think that you saw last year – especially against Division 1 opposition – he was always up there with the best of them. It is very disappointing to lose a player of that calibre, and not just on the pitch; I have great time for Daniel off the pitch.

“I suppose this isn’t a decision he has taken lightly. He has had travel in his mind for the last number of years, like after his degree and then we convinced him to stay. But now he is at the end of his masters and he just feels that if he doesn’t go now before he goes into the world of full-time employment he may not get the chance again.

“We met several times over the course of the last six weeks and we’re all adults at this stage, and obviously I put forward our case; he knows what he means to the group and to the team, but he felt he had to make the decision for him and there’s nothing that I could have said or done to change his mind. We tried a lot, and that’s fair enough. It’s very disappointing, and yes it’s a blow to the team, but it’s also an opportunity for someone else.”

The Kildare manager hopes that Kelly will be back in the panel at some point in the new year, but he doesn’t know yet whether or not the Athy star will be committing following his travels.

The incoming players are certainly very interesting too, with a number of those coming in having previously played with the county at senior level. Carbury star Eoghan O’Flaherty is the headline name after taking two years out of the intercounty game, while Adam Tyrrell and Padraig Fogarty also return to the panel after impressive club seasons. Ben McCormack returns after taking time away to focus on an apprenticeship in 2018, while clubmate Conor Hartley is back in after impressing on his return from a serious knee injury.

Cathal McNally looks unlikely to play much football in the early part of the year as he recovers from an Achilles tendon rupture, which is currently being assessed on a month by month basis by the Kildare medical staff.

The players were taking part in a training camp in the Curragh Camp on Sunday, where they met up with the new look management team for the first time. Tom Cribbin, Karl O’Dwyer and Alan Flynn make up O’Neill’s management team for 2019, with Ronan Sweeney and Enda Murphy stepping away from their roles following two years of involvement.

None of the Two Mile House players were involved on Sunday as they prepare for a Leinster Intermediate Championship final, and Kildare’s training next Saturday morning has been scheduled for early in the day to allow players to travel and support the Kildare club in Tullamore.

Kildare senior football panel:

Mark Donnellan- Maynooth

Fionn Dowling- Suncroft

Aaron O’Neill- Carbury

Paschal Connell- Athy

Peter Kelly- Two Mile House

Fergal Conway- Celbridge

David Hyland- Athy

Aaron Masterson- Moorefield

Mick O Grady- Celbridge

David Slattery- Confey

Mark Hyland- Athy

Paul Cribbin- Johnstownbridge

Mark Dempsey- Moorefield

Mark Sherry- Two Mile House

Mark Barrett- Ballymore Eustace

Paddy Brophy- Celbridge

DJ Earley- Monasterevan

Eoghan O’Flaherty- Carbury

John O’Toole- Monasterevan

Adam Tyrrell- Moorefield

Eoin Doyle- Naas

Tony Archbold- Celbridge

Keith Cribbin- Johnstownbridge

Neill Flynn- Maynooth

Cian O’Donoghue- Clane

Chris Healy- Two Mile House

Kevin Flynn- Celbridge

Jimmy Hyland- Ballyteague

James Murray- Moorefield

Padraig Nash- Monasterevan

Conor Hartley- Sarsfields

Ben McCormack- Sarsfields

David Malone- Raheens

Brian McLaughlin- Clane

Jason Gibbons- Kilcock

Podge Fogarty- St Laurence’s

Kevin Feely- Athy

Kevin O’Callaghan- Celbridge

Tommy Moolick- Leixlip