Kildare v Laois: The game at a glance
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Man of the match
Mikey Conway (Kildare)
Human dynamo, involved in practically every positive move of Kildare's. Scored a point, was involved in the two goals and blocked a goal-bound shot late in the game.
Turning point
Alan Smith's goal for Kildare after nine minutes. It came against the run of play and brought the Lillies level after a blistering start by Laois.
Talking point
Kildare were rampant against Laois. Can they repeat that performance in the Leinster final? Because if they do, they can win the title.
Ref watch
Dave Coldrick from Meath did a reasonable job in keeping control.
Missed some off-the-ball jiggery-pokery but made up for it by playing a good advantage that led to Kildare's first goal.
They said
"We got the two goals at good times. You don't get anything extra for winning. We got on a roll, we were ruthless and we pushed on which was encouraging. When you get your chances, you have to take them."
Kieran McGeeney (Kildare manager)
"We thought we were well up for the game and that we had prepared well for it. Then the first goal came. We were going well up to that and then we didn't respond to it."
Sean Dempsey (Laois manager)
Match statistics
Wides: Kildare 13 (6); Laois 3 (0)
Frees: Kildare 22 (9); Laois 20 (10)
Yellow cards: Kildare 1 (D Earley, 70); Laois 3: J O'Loughlin (9), K Meaney (58), C Rodgers (59)
Attendance: 14,334.
What next?
Kildare play Dublin in the Leinster final on July 12; Laois go into the draw for the second round of qualifiers.
