Murphy: Louth hurlers have stepped up this year

Louth suffered a narrow defeat against Roscommon in the Allianz National Hurling League at PPFS Darver on Saturday afternoon. Joint senior hurling manager Diarmuid Murphy saw enough to underline the progress being made.

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Speaking after the game, he said, “They are probably a little bit sharper than us in the final third, all right, but a super performance again from our lads.

“I can't fault them from one to 20, wherever they come on, the five or six subs that were made. They've been brilliant, absolutely brilliant.

“You can see the pitch conditions out there weren't great, but they stood up to it as well. A couple of minutes ago, it was 12-11, it's finished 14-11. It was tight near the very, very end.”

Underfoot conditions were heavy, and handling and striking was tested throughout.

“They probably did in the end, I suppose. They dropped one back in the first half, even dropped one in the second half too, number 14 dropped back in.

“We just didn't get the grips in the first half, didn't squeeze up enough, just didn't see the danger, didn't squeeze up enough, and their puck outs were a bit too easy, but we'll learn the next day.”

Half time

Louth led by a point at the interval, but left a few chances behind them in the first period.

“We did with a good few ways in the first half, I think we had seven or eight ways in the first half.

“Two or three of them would have made a big difference if it had been at halftime. We knew a point wasn't enough at half-time. Otherwise, we were in a super effort in the second half as well.

“You got it difficult to get it back, but the boys, we can't fault their effort, though. They got it back to a point with two or three minutes to go.

“We still thought we were right in the game. We needed the next puck out, and the next puck out come, and the breaks just didn’t happen for us.”

Close finish

At 0-12 to 0-11 in the closing stages, the next score was always going to carry weight but it was Roscommon that found it.

“It was vital. We were looking at it, and we were trying to get the next puck out and try and push on and push on, but they were super. I can't fault their effort.

“It's just instilling a bit of belief in them that they can step up to the actual level they’re in the Christy Ring this year. The boys know they can hurl at that level.

“It's just a belief in the boys, that's all it is. We try to instil in them every week that they're better than what they put themselves out to be.

“We'll go back at it again next week. We've got Donegal next weekend at home and next Sunday, so we'll push on for that.

“It was massive last year. They have stepped up. The boys have really stepped up this year now. They have taken a step forward.”

McGuinness

“The few players who got in, Aaron McGuinness, full-back again today, was brilliant. We were looking for boys to perform every week.”

“He has put his name to it. Conor was in for the last couple of years. Conor Quigley is injured for a minute, but Aaron really stepped up.

“It's sort of the same. If we get Conor back, where are we going to put him, because Aaron really cemented himself into the full-back line.

“He's been great through the next and there again today, coming out with the ball. If there's a ruck happen, he's the only man coming out with that ball.”

Next

“A work in progress, yeah. We didn’t get the results today, so it's definitely a work in progress. We'll push on again for next week.

“Another tough one next week, Donegal. They'll obviously be bringing a lot to the table. Donegal will be bringing a lot to the table, but we won't fear them.

“We'll talk to the boys during the week. We won't fear them at all. We'll get a bit of work done and see what they have and push on for next week.”