Manager Diane O'Hora reacts to Kildare's All-Ireland Intermediate Championship win
“I wouldn’t be very composed at the minute, I have no thoughts, we absolutely got out of jail today. It's going to take a few minutes to sink in,” the words of a somewhat shell-shocked Kildare manager Diane O’Hora following her side’s dramatic All-Ireland Intermediate final win over Clare in Croke Park.
“I was really happy with it, we were controlling the game really well. Granted, there were a lot of opportunities we missed today that we would normally be putting over.”
There were also endless positives in the Kildare display and the Mayo legend was full of praise for her treble-winners.
O'Hora said, “You have to walk away and go the harder you work, the luckier you get. This has that ‘never say die’ attitude and they have been at that all year. They have had so many things up against them in games and they have come out on top.
“They were eight points the better team today bar two mistakes in the whole entire match. Were we clinical enough in front of goal? When we had more opportunities, probably not. I felt we really were (controlling the game) and it was a positive outcome.”
The final was a relief to everyone in the Kildare contingent in Croke Park after their commanding lead evaporated. But they held on for a historic Championship win after a ridiculously successful year.
“I could see an expression of shock in a lot of their faces out there and you can just see that it’s going to take a while for this all to sink in. I think the one-point margin was a heart-stopping scenario for us,” O'Hora said.
Kildare will now look ahead to Senior Championship football in 2024 but the manager doesn't think its time for that chat yet.
She said, “Before we talk about that (senior), we are talking about homecomings, celebrations and enjoying it. What is really important to me is that these girls have won everything they could possibly win this year and it’s really hard to do.”
Amongst the discussion of the prospect of Senior football, O'Hora was clear in her communication that it is Kildare that is heading into Division 2 in early 2024 as her one-year contract expired.
The sentiments of this writer I imagine will mirror many readers in that we hope to see Diane O'Hora in a Kildare dugout into next year and beyond.