Kenny aims to lead by example

Meath captain Seamus Kenny isn't complaining about the demands on his time as he prepares for Sunday's eagerly-awaited Leinster SFC quarter-final against Kildare at Croke Park. With Meath football making the headlines consistently for different reasons, not all of them positive, the Simonstown Gaels clubman took time-out on Sunday evening to answer the call of Leinster Council PRO JJ Walsh for some publicity with the Delaney Cup. Kenny had just completed an intensive weekend training with the Meath panel as manager Seamus McEnaney and his selector Paul Grimley put the finishing touches to next Sunday's gameplan. Sunday's visit to Croke Park will be the first back at the venue for Meath since last year's All-Ireland SFC quarter-final defeat by the Lilywhites which ultimately paved the way to the exit door for manager Eamonn O'Brien. "It was a bit of a shock when Eamonn was replaced, but that's not an issue for the players, we have to perform on the pitch and we want to do that, regardless of who is in charge," the Meath captain told the Meath Chronicle this week. "We might be considered underdogs for this game, based solely on our league form, but that won't count for anything once the ball is thrown-in on Sunday because our focus has always been on the opening game in the defence of the Leinster SFC title. "The league didn't work out for us and we had to battle for survival on the last day against Tyrone, we had to get a result that day and we did, not unlike what we will have to do on Sunday," he added. Kenny is one of a small number of players who have featured in most of Meath's competitive games this year in both the NFL and O'Byrne Cup and Shield competitions. He hails from a family steeped in GAA tradition and feels that it is an honour not only to captain the team, but to get an opportunity to put on the county jersey. "It's an honour to wear the Meath jersey, I'd be quite prepared to play in any position, the important thing for me is to make the starting line-up, it's the same for the other players, there is great pride in being selected for the county team," he said. "I can understand that the supporters might get frustrated if we are not winning, or not playing well, but the frustration they feel is tiny in comparison to how frustrated the players would be. "We would be training five times during the week, between the gym and out on the pitch, we are putting in a massive effort and the demands seem to increase each year. "I've been lucky enough to avoid injury ahead of this game on Sunday, but we've lost Eoghan Harrington, he will be a huge loss and then Cormac McGuinness is unavailable due to work commitments. "The only option for us is to get on with it, I'm sure Kildare have their problems also, but we can only focus on our own performance. "Someone else will get an opportunity, just look at the way Graham Reilly made an impact last year, now he is a household name. "The most important thing for us at the moment is the game against Kildare on Sunday, we are focused on retaining our Leinster title. "The mood is very good in the camp, we are all very positive, we are all looking forward to the game, hopefully the supporters will get behind us as they are also very important to us," concluded a busy Meath captain.