Kildare's injured duo expected to make final

After unprecedented scenes of celebration following their All-Ireland semi-final victory over Kerry on Sunday, Kildare are to resume training tomorrow night as their preparation for the final begins in earnest.

Sources close to the camp have indicated that they are confident that their two major casualties, Padraig Graven and Niall Buckley will make a full recovery before September 27th.

Shock waves rippled throughout Croke Park before the match with the announcement of Buckley's late withdrawal. The midfielder tore his hamstring at training early on in the week and failed a late fitness test on Saturday morning.

"He wanted to play and naturally was very despondent but knew that for the good of the team, he had to sit it out," said the Kildare County Board PRO Richie Whelan.

He felt that Buckley's misfortune possibly inspired his team-mates collectively. "That might well be the case. There was certainly a lot of sympathy for Niall's situation and a determination to make it up to him." Graven, Kildare's main free-taker, suffered concussion during a second half clash and spent Sunday evening in hospital. Graven was injured 10 minutes into the second half but played on and converted a free before retiring.

"We were aware fairly immediately that Padraig was in trouble but only when he came off did the seriousness of his injury become apparent. He was taken to hospital immediately and will obviously need a little time to recuperate," said Whelan.

It is anticipated that both players will be fit for the All-Ireland final.

Galway manager John O'Mahony, who attended yesterday's game, said he was particularly impressed with Kildare's mental resolve.

"The manner in which they reacted to the Kerry goal, with Dermot Earley winning the kick-out and earning a free which was converted really emphasised their character. This wasn't like Kildare of old at all, they were really positive throughout. Their defence, their running off the ball, midfield - all combined for a very strong display. I won't be at all surprised if they are installed as raging hot favourites for this All-Ireland," he said yesterday.

O'Mahony had heard a rumour on Saturday evening that Buckley might be forced to withdraw from the side and believes Kildare's attitude to that setback to be noteworthy.

"They just got on with it. Earley gave a fine display and it just highlighted their belief. Kildare have had a much tougher passage to this final, beating the All-Ireland champions of the past three years running (Kerry, Meath, Dublin) and in a sense, they have taken the highway while we got here on the side roads. But it's down to one game now, it's down to 70 minutes."

Agreeing that the novel pairing makes this All-Ireland semi-final one which neutrals will savour, O`Mahony does not believe that the intense interest will hinder either side's preparation.

"You have these sideshows with the media which are essentially for the fans and that's part of the game, but once they are out of the way, it's a matter of focusing on the main event, which is the football match."

That said, each of the four semi-finalists in this year's championship adopted a zealously guarded approach towards publicity, with dethroned champions Kerry favouring an utterly reclusive front. Kildare, also, were extremely reticent about speaking out in earlier rounds while Galway have grown progressively more introverted as their season lengthened. O'Mahony expects that the next few weeks will also be peaceful.

"We will have our designated evening for the media and will be keeping a fairly low profile after that," he said.

As Offaly prepare for Sunday weeks' All-Ireland hurling final against Kilkenny, the GAC have yet to decide if they will examine incidents concerning their midfielder Johnny Pilkington and forward Michael Duignan. Both men were fortunate not to have been reprimanded for striking during the void match in the Clare-Offaly trilogy.

While GAA PRO Danny Lynch was unable to speculate about what may happen, the committee is to meet next week and the matter may be tabled for discussion then. The consequences of an investigation could prove dire for Offaly, as the GAC might decide to study video evidence in considering the matter, as they did before suspending Clare's Colin Lynch for three months for his part in an incident before the replayed Munster final against Waterford.