Dooley says Laois can take inspiration off Kildare

The Laois senior hurlers are gearing up for another campaign in Division 2, their second stint at that level in three seasons.

Rosenallis’s David Dooley, who captained the county in 2025, is still awaiting confirmation on whether he will retain the captaincy. However, Dooley admits leadership is spread throughout the panel and believes whoever is chosen will be fully deserving of the role.

“I haven't heard anything this year so far. Look, it was a massive honour for me last year to get it, but there are a number of lads on the panel this year again that can easily take the spot. I'd obviously love to be again, but you can't begrudge anybody that would come in and take it either. You'd have to back them 100% because they're just as worthy, if not more, than I am. We'll see what comes down the line,” he said.

Dooley’s first full year on the panel came back in 2024 when Laois went on to win Division 2 before reaching the Joe McDonagh Cup final. This time around, Laois face some novel clashes with trips to Mayo and London in the league.

“My first year in. That year, we had a successful league campaign, beating Carlow in the final. This year is going to be quite different. There are some fixtures there that none of us have really encountered before. We've Mayo away on the first day, so it's going to be a different kind of environment and surroundings.

“We're up to Castlebar for the first day and London away as well for the last game. A year of different fixtures for most of us, but look, they're the ones we have to embrace and really get after,” Dooley said.

Laois got relegated in 2025, their first year back in Division 1B. Dooley felt that their defeat in Antrim was the one that hurt the most as a victory would have seen them secure their status in the division.

“It was obviously disappointing to get relegated. We felt we let ourselves down a small bit, particularly up in Antrim, when it was in our control, there were the games we fell short on. That was the most disappointing thing, that it was in our control and we still fell at the final hurdle.

“But look, you kind of have to dust yourself down. It's a quick turnaround then to the Joe McDonagh. I thought we started very well in the Joe McDonagh. Obviously, getting to the final was a dream scenario again. Got a bit of a shock, I suppose, off Kildare in the group stage, and kind of never recovered against them again in the final,” he said.

Dooley is hoping Laois can take some inspiration from Kildare, as they were in the same position last year when they got promoted from Division 2 and used that momentum to go on and win the Joe McDonagh.

“When you look at this year coming now, Kildare were in a similar scenario. They got promoted from Division 2 and probably just carried that momentum into the Joe McDonagh, which probably spurred them on a small bit more than our relegation.

“It's a different scenario this year. Hopefully, we can hit the ground running in the league and bring a winning mentality and a bit of form into the Joe McDonagh,” Dooley said.

2026 saw the return of the Walsh Cup, something the Rosenallis clubman was a big fan of.

“I was definitely a fan of them, to be honest. They obviously did away with them last year. I played them in my first year and again this year. As a player, you want to be playing as many games as you can, competitive games at that. There was a bit of a crowd at the games as well. In Rathdowney for two games and in Stradbally for the other. There was a bit of a buzz, a bit of a stir at these games.

“You were playing top-tier one teams in Wexford and Kilkenny and you're kind of testing yourselves. They're definitely better than challenge games or slogging away in training sessions. They were good to blood new lads as well and to give lads a chance to show themselves coming into the league,” he said.

This year will be different in some regard as Laois have to travel to London twice. Dooley says that the weekends away with the lads allow you to build a bond with them heading into the championship.

“We definitely hope so. These long trips, you're basically spending a full weekend with the lads on the panel. You can probably get away and do activities, maybe the day before, if you have time in the evening. Things like that I find very beneficial to group together. It's going to be challenging because not many lads are used to getting on a plane to go hurling. It will bring its own challenges, but I think it will set us up nicely for the fixtures down the line as well,” Dooley added.

When asked about Laois’ aspirations in 2026, Dooley is hopeful that the O’Moore County can finally get over the line in the Joe McDonagh, having lost the last two finals. The league is Laois’ main aim for the moment, however.

“It's a long way away yet. We’ll take the league as it comes first, and just get out of that. As I said earlier, we’ll be trying to build momentum and a bit of winning form going into the championship. Third time lucky, hopefully, try and get back to Croker and this time bring the cup home. The last two years have been disappointing, going away empty-handed from Croke Park. The panel is very strong this year. It’s a very competitive group and a very competitive management group as well. All guns blazing, trying to build the momentum in the league and try to put our best foot forward then for the championship,” he concluded.