Glenn Ryan reacts to Kildare's dismal defeat to Dublin

It was a very subdued and disappointed manager Glenn Ryan we spoke to after the final whistle in Nowlan Park on Saturday.

“Very disappointing, we should have been able to manage that period (when Dublin scored seven points in seven minutes of the opening half) we allowed some very simple scores for them; it was a performance that lacked all the things you'd like to see in players.”

Against Sligo the manager said his side lacked application and asked if this was the differencd against Dublin he replied “hard to see anything otherwise; Dublin played well, no doubt about that, but we felt we had put a system in place that was able to deal with that; there was no change in our game plan; no change in anything we would have spoken in advance of it but unfortunately we just did not bring that out to the pitch” quickly adding “we did not work hard enough.”

The manager pointed out that in the second half Kildare kicked five out of fourteen attempts, “that is not good enough, particularly when you are looking to get into a game; you need every opportunity to give you that energy to go forward; we kicked the first few points of the second half ... but after that ...”

Looking ahead to the final game, or more immediately to the Roscommon v Sligo (The Rossies won by ten) game and how that pans out, Glenn said “we don't need to be looking there; our problems are within the four walls of the dressing room; we go to training, we try to correct them and we think we have them; you try to put stuff in place that makes you a better side and then you get days like today that looks like we are not doing anything at all.”

What's the explanation for that?

“If we could only find that” replies the Round Towers man.

“I would have thought that after the Sligo game that you might be able, not justify the performance, but look and say, now, this is what is wrong, maybe that's just an excuse but maybe we are just looking for excuses.”

Asked if the management team will take any criticism on board as well as the players ... are you (the management) looking at yourselves and saying maybe we should be doing this or that different?

“When you get the run that we have had this year, up and down, you are looking at it every night trying to find what is missing; you go looking every night to improve things and make things better; there is no one harder on themselves than myself and the rest of the management team but this a collective; players, team, everybody involved, it reflects on everyone; there's criticism across the board and we are well able to take that when it comes our way ; at the end of the day it is about trying to get things right; if you win you try to improve; if you lose you try harder to try and improve but then you get a day like today ...”

Asked about injuries the manager said they will be looking at everyone we have, including the U20 players.