Laois face a considerable step-up against Meath as they bid to reach another Leinster final, manager John Sugrue insists.
Only three times in Laois’s history have they put a run of successive provincial final appearances together (1936-38, 1946-47 and 2003-05) and having inherited a side in Division Four, it would be another feather in Sugrue’s managerial cap if he was steer them back to the decider on the back of successive League promotions.
But he cautioned: “Last year we played Westmeath, Carlow and Wexford who were, like ourselves, Division Three and Division Four.
“We were Division Four last year so we were in amongst our own company and then this year Westmeath and ourselves got out [of Division Three] and we just managed to get through a tight game against them so we’re definitely stepping up when you hit a Meath team who have qualified for Division One.
“If you look at the scenario with regard to us, we’ve one game played and we’ve been a little bit more patchy this year than we were last year.
“I think Meath have got a bit of traction in this year’s Leinster Championship definitely, more so than in recent years, so I’d say they probably have a little bit more momentum than us if anything this weekend but there’s a good prize there. A Leinster final is not to be sneezed at.
“It’s one of those things, will we go into the game with a chance? We probably will but we’ll have to be at our best to get a result out of this.”
Sugrue’s hand has been weakened by the absence of full-back Mark Timmons (broken hand) and Paul Cahilline (knee) through injury, albeit Cahillane missed the win over Westmeath as well, while there are worries over Colm Begley (Achilles) too.
Captain Stephen Attride is back, however, after an ankle problem and having introduced the likes of Brendan Quigley and Donie Kingston off the bench last time, Sugrue has developed a squad with depth.
“We’re carrying a panel, that’s what we have guys in there for,” said Sugrue.
“Some guys that are going to come in this week that may not have come in on the last game so it’s very much a case of horses for courses for us.”
VERDICT: Meath
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