AT 35 YEARS of age, many GAA athletes have lost the hunger to compete in the sport.

Kildare’s John Doyle is different though. Despite very much being a veteran in sporting terms, he has decided to come back for a 14th season with the side.

However, Doyle admits the decision was one he thought about carefully, but ultimately, the lure of another season was too tempting to resist.

“When you get that bit older, you realise that when you do close the door, that’s it,” he says. “There is no visiting it again. That was very much in the back of my mind.

“I thought about it, I spoke to Siobhan at home, she gave me all the support. I had a good chat with Kieran McGeeney. Once I felt I had something to offer [and] I’ve been lucky. We have a special bunch at the moment, it is very hard to walk away from it.

“Once you think you have something to offer, when you make the decision to get back into training, that’s it.”

Nor did Doyle seek to take the easier route of bypassing playing in the somewhat less important games taking place in January and February, in order to save his energy for the county’s vital later fixtures.

“I felt it was all or nothing,” he explains. “I’d prefer to be out doing a bit, trying to keep as sharp as I can. I’m sure if I went to Kieran and said I wanted a bit of time off, he would have been accommodating, but I didn’t want that. I’m the same as everyone else.”

In addition, the corner forward believes the side’s upcoming games in the O’Byrne Cup will be useful preparation, ahead of the challenge of competing against Division 1 teams.

“It gives you an opportunity to blood players and get rid of that rustiness. There was plenty of it out there against Wexford, the ball handling was poor, it gives you a chance to get rid of that. It won’t count for a lot when you come in against Donegal in the first game.

“There is no room for error from the word go.

“They are the games you want. You want to be up there but you also want to be competing. That’s what it’s all about. It’s getting up there with the big boys and competing. Once you’re in that company, as the year goes on, you can build on that and hopefully we can do that for the championship.”

Doyle is also enthusiastic about the prospect of being able to play some upcoming league clashes at Croke Park. The move, which will apply for their games against Donegal and Dublin, will consequently allow Kildare County Board to upgrade St Conleth’s Park.

“It’s not a bad substitute to have. For young lads coming in, maybe they can be a bit in awe of it. It’s only by playing up there that you see the grass is the same, the goals are the same. These are the basic principles. For the young lads especially, it’s good for them to get the few extra games.”

Moreover, Kildare this year face the additional challenge of competing in Division 1, having been crowned Division 2 champions last April, and Doyle acknowledges that it’s bound to be a significant step up in terms of the quality of the opposition.

“You can often play at a lower level and even though Division 2 can be competitive, you can sometimes paper over the cracks. You won’t be punished as much, but every mistake at the higher level is going to be punished. It’s how we deal with them and how we learn from them. But you are going to be punished that bit more at the higher level.

“There is a great team ethos there. It is very hard to build that over a season, even two seasons. Obviously, lads for one reason or another come and go, but that bond is always there, it’s that sort of, I don’t know if it’s mental toughness, to keep going to the bitter end. You’d be pleased with that side of it today.”

And given that it may well be his last season playing, does Doyle believe it is a defining year for Kildare?

“You can read a lot into that. It was said last year that it was do or die. It’s do or die every year. Regardless of whatever happens in 2013, we’ll be back in 2014. You’re not going anywhere, that will always be the case.

“We’ll have to learn harsh lessons along the way. It’s not always pretty.”

Get that dog off the pitch…>

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