Coffey keeping Wicklow alert to Carlow's threat

Pecking order is a relative notion and among Wicklow folk, there would be a tendency to regard Carlow as easy pickings. Moses Coffey would warn against such complacency.

"It should be remembered that Carlow have a better record than us when it comes to summer games," he says.

"Okay, we beat them fairly convincingly in the O'Byrne Cup early this year but that is of absolutely no importance now. We are going into this match feeling that we have prepared very well and there is a lightness about the step of the lads, but we are utterly focused on Carlow alone and have not really looked beyond this game."

When you play in Leinster, faced with the towering boulders of Meath, Kildare and Dublin, it is hard to gauge what represents a successful year. Getting to play in the capital is generally regarded as a positive step. More than one active Sunday is always welcomed. For Coffey, the new back door system offers a chance to do both.

"I'm strongly in favour of it, just wish it had come into being a few years ago when we had quite an experienced team. A few years ago, Wicklow prepared to play against Meath in the first round. I think it is true to say the Wicklow lads probably trained as diligently for that match as Meath. But at the back of their minds was the fact that they had just one shot and that brought its own pressures.

"Meath went on to win the All-Ireland that year and it just highlighted the severity of the system. It is always being said but teams like ourselves need games, and against quality opposition."

The league provided a programme of potentially worthwhile games, with a visit to Armagh and Cork on the agenda. As it was, Wicklow finished with a 50 per cent record but Coffey's findings are ultimately inconclusive.

"It was all right but I would find it hard to pick out a high point. We ought to have beaten Armagh, who were understrength that day, but lost out with a soft score late on and that effectively ended our hopes of promotion. And it was stop-start in terms of injuries and the foot-and-mouth postponement. There wasn't as much momentum about it as we would have liked."

It was an indifferent follow-up to last year's disappointment when Wicklow needed a win on the last phase of the round-robin series against Wexford to qualify for a date against Dublin in Croke Park. After a disastrous first half, they rallied but full time elapsed as they went seeking the kill.

"I suppose a fair few fancied us to go through that day. But I think that it is important to note that we are really in transition now. Many lads that had been around the scene for most of a decade had decided to leave it and we are still shaping a new young team. Down would be a more illustrious comparison to our own current state, I think.

"Last year we showed signs but were inconsistent. We began well against Carlow, missed penalties against Longford and then came the Wexford match. So we were disappointed but I feel we are stronger this year."

Coffey is uncertain as to how far his team can go but believes the new system is more likely to produce unexpected results.

"I think that the standard is closing. There are probably a dozen teams out there who are in the higher echelon and then beneath that list is a body of teams where any one side could defeat the other on a given day. The more games teams get to play, the stronger they will become so I would hope that we are capable of improving as the championship goes on.

"Our players are young and are committed to this. We know we have improvements to make and have been working on those. I just hope we can get the results to match the effort, starting with Carlow this weekend."