IN FOCUS/Limerick Footballers: Ian O'Riordan talks to Liam Kearns whose side are within touching distance of Division One of the league

Limerick are one of the few counties that can rely on hope, rather than just prayer, when it comes to the uncertainty still surrounding the promotion and relegation places in this year's National Football League. On Sunday, they host Wicklow in Kilmallock and victory, or even a draw, would be enough to see the county promoted to Division One for the first time.

Even if they lose, Limerick will only be denied promotion from Division Two A if Louth beat Westmeath in Mullingar. Wicklow are clearly struggling having won only once in six games, while Westmeath are flying as high as Limerick at the top of the table having only lost once.

Despite all that, Limerick manager Liam Kearns has only one result on his mind. "We are approaching Sunday as a must-win game," he says. "It is the only way we can approach it. We know we can still lose out at this stage and so we're certainly not going to take any chances now and start thinking about promotion when we're not actually there."

What is clear is that Limerick and Westmeath are ideally positioned for promotion. This too in a division where nothing much could be taken for granted, with the likes of Offaly and Louth also thinking about the higher level of football for 2004. So Kearns can already afford to look back with some satisfaction.

"Yeah, it has been a successful campaign so far and I am very happy with the way things have gone. I knew all along that we would have to win in one of our two big away games against Westmeath and Louth. As things worked out I think we were a bit unlucky not to beat Westmeath, and perhaps a little lucky to beat Louth. But it will only be a truly successful campaign if we win on Sunday.

"Still, there's no doubt now that we're in the position we wanted to be in. What happens now is in our own hands and it's up to us to take the chance and not let it slip."

Like any inter-county manager, Kearns has also been using the league to develop his championship panel and from that point of view he is also well satisfied. "I'd say we're very close to having the sort of championship panel we want," he says.

"To be honest, we've never had a full panel of players for any one of our league games. Stephen Lucey was missing from centre back for three big games and that was a huge loss. Pat Ahern has been injured, John Murphy was away for a while, and Conor Fitzgerald was also missing at various stages. So this panel has done very well considering not everybody was available at all times."

Kearns is now in his fourth year with the Limerick seniors, two of which he also spent with the under-21 side. It was his memorable run with the under-21 side out of the Munster championship in the spring of 2000 - the first by a Limerick team - that proved to be the most significant development for football in the county in several decades.

The current senior panel is backboned by that under-21 team, and promotion to Division One would mark the final stage in that development. Again, Kearns does not want to tempt fate in any way, but securing that top-flight status had always been one of his prime targets.

"Look, if we do beat Wicklow, then we will be where we want to be. It's important to get to the top level not just for the competition, but to know as well where we really stand. And that was something we were prepared to try for this year. In fact, when we just missed out last year I wasn't too disappointed. I didn't really think the team was fully ready to move. But I think the time is right now."