The most remarked-on result in Sunday's National Hurling League programme was Laois's victory over Kilkenny at Nowlan Park. Whereas most of the attention focused on the home side's continuing poor form and the formal return from retirement of DJ Carey, the match was confirmation of Laois's improvement in this year's League.
When Babs Keating (now in charge of Offaly) stepped down as Laois manager last season, it looked as if the trace-revival of his first year in charge had been well and truly lost. His successor Padraig Horan has, however, made a positive start.
It's particularly unwise to extrapolate from Laois's good league campaigns as they invariably precede championship calamity, but Horan is pleased with the progress. Captain of Offaly's All-Ireland winning team in 1981 and coach to his county when they won the league seven years ago and to Birr when the club lifted its first All-Ireland title in 1995, he was happy because the result represented a reward for the hard work of the players.
"It's good from the point of view of our lads who have worked fierce hard and still had nothing to show for it. They came off a good draw with Tipp and then got hammered by Waterford.
"It was a good win but Kilkenny are not going well. It'll be different the next time we meet them. We probably should have beaten Wexford if we hadn't hit 15 wides and we fell flat against Waterford. But we hurled well yesterday and were reasonably confident, it was a great lift for us."
Coming in at the helm of a team whose Division One status (as well as - to be fair - Wexford's and Clare's) was saved only by the restructuring of the National League, and whose championship highlights have tended to be honourable defeats, Horan was well acquainted with the task ahead.
"I'm nearly as familiar with Laois as I am with Offaly. I was happy enough with the players, I felt there was enough of them in Laois. Now I think they're as good as any in Leinster. They have to play more ground hurling and move it faster but I like to think it will happen for us if not this year, next year."
Given the lack of championship impact at any level, Laois's prospects as assessed by Horan sound unfeasibly rosy.
"We have the backs and midfield. It's a young enough team. People think of Niall Rigney being around for so long and Bill Maher and Owen Coss, but the next oldest is 25.
"I suppose I'm short one or two forwards to finish, like (Paul) Flynn in Waterford or maybe if (DJ) Carey could be persuaded to switch - a lethal corner forward. There's a good few good forwards but a lack of a top-class one.
"They remind me of ourselves (Offaly in his playing days). We got to a couple of league semi-finals but the next thing, Kilkenny annihilated us in the championship."
Kilkenny also are rebuilding. Under the new management of Kevin Fennelly, the team has suffered a great deal of distraction with DJ Carey's on-off retirement, injuries and the need to improve the side that reached last year's All-Ireland semi-final.
Even allowing for the county's traditions of preferring hard ground and not picking up momentum until the championship is in progress, Kilkenny are leaving it late to sort out a team this year with a tricky championship first round against an improving Dublin due at the end of next month.
"I would have put money on Kilkenny doing well this league but they didn't do well against us or against Tipperary," says Horan. "They have new management and replacing players like Pat O'Dwyer and Eddie O'Connor is hard, they're going through a transition. But you never know with Kilkenny.
"If that (championship match) was in Croke Park, I'd say yeah, Kilkenny, but at Parnell Park, it's different. Dublin are very confident."
Sunday's match marked the return of DJ Carey, brought on as a substitute after 27 minutes. After such a long lay-off, Carey has his own work cut out to tune in for the championship. Horan believes, however, that the player's return had immediate impact on Kilkenny.
"DJ wasn't that sharp but he was a huge improvement on anything around him. DJ's a finisher and Kilkenny need to win ball to get it into him. He made a terrific goal and was the only real danger they had. John Shortall was sent off for a foul on him which was a pity. It was a stupid foul and I wouldn't criticise the referee except that maybe it was a bit harsh.
"I'm friendly with DJ and feel sympathy for him. There's huge expectation on him. When he came on there was a huge roar and you could sense the pressure on him to perform. The supporters will be looking to DJ all the time. But come the championship, when the ball's on the top of the ground, we'll see."
