Your Favourite kildare gaa memory

Well any thoughts on your favourite kildare memory?

beating kerry in croke park in 98

1. Beating Laois in '97 with 13 men. I'd never seen elation like it from a Kildare crowd. We went mental that day. Just to set the scene - Laois had beaten us well in '96 and all the usual stuff was thrown at Kildare (no bottle, fancy dans, too soft etc.). Micko was back for '97 but it looked like it could be a short stint when Martin Lynch and Johnny McDonald were both sent off with only ten minutes gone. Kildare showed such great heart, resolve and backbone that day (epitomised by Glenn who was simply immense and even stood up to bury a penalty past Fergal Byron). I remember a quote from someone in the papers the next day saying that "Kildare would no longer be seen as the doormats of Leinster Football".

2. Beating the Dubs in the first round replay in '98. We had suffered many painful days against them during Micko's first stint in charge in the early nineties. I'll never forget the match when Ken Doyle kicked a point to put us one clear deep into injury time only for Charlie Redmond to get an equalizer into the Hill (think it was '94). It seemed like we'd never beat them. We dominated the first day out in '98 but we just couldn't put them away. It was the same old story. It was absolute magic in the replay when Glenn kicked that point to put us four clear. The monkey was off the back.

3. The '98 Leinster Final. It looked like '97 all over again when they reeled us back with only minutes to go. No one will ever forget the sheer joy when Brian Murphy stuck it in the back of the Hill goal. Willie McCreery and Eddie McCormack added two more points. Cue mahem!

Beating Kerry in Croker in '98. God I thought my heart was going to burst through my chest I was so proud . Hugged, kissed and cried with total strangers. God I'm nearly in tears just thinking about it.

Good call kk, i would like to add the first three minutes in the second half of the 2000 Leinster final replay

One our friends in laois seem to think Glen Ryan would be a good choice to replace their manager.

http://www.laoistalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2002&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=45

Leinster Final in 98 beats them all for me. Never have I known before or since an explosion of sheer joy and emotion as there was on that day.

Beating the Dubs in 2000, six points down at half time and we were taking flak of the dubs in the stand, cue Fennin and Earley to rattle the onion sack and off we go. Same Dubs then creeping out among the chaos.

Have to say the thrashing of Laois last year was very pleasent especially after 2005.

I would say the whole of '98 (except for 27th of september bad day) -
Beating the dubs, hammering the queens. Beating meath who i thought we were caught by them again, but then came the goal from christy to dermot to martin lynch and into Brian murphy. Then beating kerry was just fantastic. Also I loved being on the hill the whole year, as part of a sea of white and getting on the pitch after the leinster and the semi final. The atmosphere in 1998 in the county was unbelieveable with the flags and banners. Oh jaysus i wish i could relive it!

Also in 2000 after playing so bad in the first half of the leinster and tagh fenins goal and dermots goal in the second half , to send the dubs home. I think that the dubs only scored once in the second half.

ILL never forget in 1993 hammering offaly by 2-14 to 0-09 to reach the leinster.That was one of the best performances by Kildare under micko in his first stint.

I would also include the 1997 beating laois and the saga with meath!

cavan in newbridge 08 that last minute goal

Considering Im young enough, I didnt even get to experience 1998 and not 2000 even so my memories wont be as special.

1-Beating Meath at Croker on a saturday evening when Enda Murphy saved a peno.
2-The whole championship last year,was proud of the lads in every peformanace. Loved the Wicklow game when Smyth got that vital goal.

For me it's a close call between beating Dublin in '98 and finally getting that bloody monkey off our backs and the Leinster Final that same year. I looked around me after the Dublin match and saw adults actually crying with joy and as far as I remember it was only a first round match.

In the Leinster Final I thought our chance was gone as Meath were coming back at us until Brian Murphy scored that magical goal, oh what joy. And running out onto the pitch when the match was over and listening to Glen Ryan's speech. It made up for all the disappointments throughout the sixties and seventies when we were beaten in I don't know how many Leinster Finals.Then later driving back down the dual carriageway with horns blaring, oh the pure magic of it all. I will never forget it.

ALWAYS WHITE - Ya in 1998 when we won for the first time in 42 years, sinc 1956, we had lost 12 leinsters (i think ) in the years between (1956-1998)

Lilypremier, and I remember every bloody one of them. We had some great footballers then but they just couldn't put it together on the big day. The nearest they came to winning a Leinster was in 1966 or thereabouts when Meath beat them by one point.

the year of 98

ALways white as do I remember them all. We had a great u 21 team that won the all ireland beating Cork but when that same team reached the senior stage,they couldnt win those vital games. I know that final against meath. Funnily enough it was a controversial final with meath- (where have we heard that before!) gettin a late point I think if my memory is correct.
I also remember the '78 final where we were hammered by dublin.

Yea, Lilypremier, useless management is right. When you look at the backup support that the current team has if we had only half that back then we would have won a few Leinsters and maybe an All Ireland. What a waste of talent.
I better stop reminiscing or I'll bore the socks off the other Forumites.

haha My theorey always was to get an outsider from kerry (eventually it was done) to manage that particluar panel of players! Just imagne if we had, had micko then, we could have achieved so much more. You're absolutley right- a waste of talent. Such a shame...

It's ironic that you talk in these terms. We have a manager now who is/has put in place the set up to challenge and there are people calling for his head due to the odd bad result.

I bet in 20 years time there will be lads saying that McGeeney had it right and that if we only had of kept him for a couple of more years we could have done great things.

The old saying be careful what you wish for rings true here.

JME I have Full confidence in Geezer I always had- from the start of his career to now. There was people calling for his head after wickow beat us I never did - I always believed in him. All I was discussing was that in the 60s we had a great panel of players and it was just they needed someone who was a sucessfull manager in there at that time, to guide the players to winning ways. Dont get me wrong, the managers at that time tried their absolute best to win but were unfortunatley unsucessfull.

Sorry, I'm not having a go at you or anyone here. It's is just you mentioned if we had a proper set up when those talented players were in their prime what might have been achieved.

I was just pointing out the similarities of the current crop. They are young, talented and extremely fit.
To take a step back now would be unthinkable.

The whole year of 98

Was only 11 but still remember being part of the sea of white on the hill, the excitement travelling up to the matches on the dual carriageway and home after winning.

Getting onto the pitch after winning the leinster final! think i still have the grass i pulled from the turf in a matchbox somewhere!

Will we ever see or feel again, anything like we did that year ....I for one hope so and thats why I go to every single match to support the team because of this hope I'll probably never let go of !!

Leinster Final 1998 and the release of emotion and the party that followed around the county closely followed by the scenes along the N7 after the Kerry game. Remember the traffic jams along Newlands Cross and people up on bonnets and roofs waving flags, chanting, blowing horns etc...Great great times.

Laois '97, was at the game, 13 men for nearly 60mins !!!!!

All of '98

Everytime we beat Meath !!

Peile, it's gas you mention every time we beat Meath as one of your favourite memories, I used to feel that way about Offaly on account of the number of times they beat us in the seventies. However I've had counselling for that and now I'm o.k., the fact that we've we've beaten them a few times helps. I've now moved my dislike over to Meath like you.

My top 5

1: 98 Leinster Final
2: 00 Leinster Final replay 2nd half 2 goals inside a minute just brilliant
3: 97 beating Laois with 13 players
4; Brian Murphys goal V Meath in 1st Replay in xtra time the move was just the best I've ever sen from the whites
5: Beating Laois in Tullamore last year Mikey conways pass to smithy for the 1st Goal

98 was a special year in Kildare footballing history and will be hard equaled.

Thing is with 98 success didnt come over night.
With more or less that bunch of players we lost League final in 91 and Leinster finals in 1992 and 1993 to Dublin.
It wont come over night, not from Kildare. We're not a super power churning out year after year of minor and u21 winning teams.
Micko left and came back in 1997 we had the 3 game run against Meath.
We were maturing and setting ourselves up for 98, micko came back as he seen we were ready.
Its hard to make the break through we need to have faith (which i do) in the current bunch of players and more importantly the management set up.
The players are young, the management are young.