A new bridge to the All Ireland

A week ago I wrote that as the draw for the All Ireland football qualifier series approached what Antrim really would prefer was a home draw against non Ulster competition. I still think it was important to escape the claustrophic nature of continous Ulster derby games, and that factor was even more important than home advantage. And lets be honest, we all would have preferred Division 4 or 3 opposition, but at least we got a team from outside our home province, and so its off to Newbridge on Saturday week for a 7pm throw in V Kildare. It could well turn out to be a cracking game of attacking football.

Is it a daunting task? Well it certainly has a right to claim the 'tie of the round' title although RTE has decided to send the live cameras to Crossmaglen instead for the Orchard county V Donega. That one wont be pretty.

Had our clash with the lillywhites been at home I would suggest we had every reason to be entirely confident going into the game. Kildare lost heavily to Louth first time out, and we had Louth dead and buried inside 20 minutes in what was a league encounter crucial to both sides. And yes I know that it doesn't automatically follow that we will beat Kildare but there is plenty of supporting evidence. Kildare were by all accounts dire against Louth and Kieran McGeeney shipped plenty of flack for his sideline decisions. Subbing corner forward Paudie O'Neill in the first half after he scored 1.1 was a bizarre move and clearly 'Geezer' is under big pressure. Newbridge was no fortress during the National League when, in Division 2, Kildare lost 4 out of 7 matches.

Antrim manage Liam Bradley is as usual sending out very positive messages about our squad and the lessons learned during and after the Tyrone defeat. It may well be the case that injuries and substitutions during that game have led the management to discover just what is the best Antrim starting 15. A challenge match victory over Down was a confidence booster, Paddy Cunningham's quirky foot injury should be cleared up in time and the entire squad is training very well.

Some of Antrim's best performances in the last two seasons have come away from Casement Park, in Ballybofey, Clones, Tullamore and Cavan. By next weekend, Newbridge might just have been added to the list.