McNulty is full of praise for his debutants - and Park/Ratheniska club

THE Laois senior footballers got their 2026 season underway on Saturday afternoon, with Dublin travelling to Ratheniska for the opening game of the O’Byrne Cup.

Laois ended up losing by six points and, after the game, manager Justin McNulty praised Park/Ratheniska GAA Club for having the pitch in such good condition and thanked them for the welcome they received.

“They've put on a great, great show here. We've been very warmly welcomed, and to get the pitch ready, given the conditions, fair play to them. It was in question earlier in the day, and thank God it happened, because it would have been an awful shame for a small rural club to have to forfeit the game. It was a lovely occasion, a lovely setting, and we're just thrilled we’ve got the welcome we got from the Park/Ratheniska club,” he said.

Speaking about the contest against Dublin, McNulty said he would look at the positives his side can take from the defeat rather than the negatives, despite the visitors getting in for four goals and potentially having a few more goal chances.

“Ach listen, there's lots to take from that game, but I take mainly positives, because I think for the first 14 minutes, I think we had one shot, and that was never going to make us competitive. Guys were turning over balls unnecessarily, unforced errors galore. But they still dug in, they kept going, they worked scores, a bit of a purple patch, Evan (O’Carroll) was on fire for a period in the game. We led for a small part of the game, and then they got on top on kick-outs, and got goals that probably were too porous at the back. They could have had two or three goals on top of that, so that was the difference between the two teams,” McNulty said.

Saturday also saw the return of Evan O’Carroll, who finished with six points, from a knee injury that ruled him out of the 2025 inter-county season. McNulty praised the Crettyard forward, along with St Joseph’s Mikie Dempsey, for the way they have recovered from serious injuries.

“He deserves enormous credit. Evan and Mikie Dempsey, who are two fellas who have suffered cruciate ligament injuries, and they've gone through the loneliness of a cruciate injury, which is a huge, huge obstacle to overcome. Both of them fellas came back, and it's great to have them back on the pitch. Evan was on fire for flashes in that match, and it's just great to have him back on the pitch,” he added.

Now into his third year managing the O’Moore County, McNulty feels the O’Byrne Cup is an important opportunity to get competitive games before the start of the league.

“I think so, you need to have competitive games in advance of the league, especially last year with the new rules. We didn't have those competitive games, and we weren't really set for them as well as we could have been. So, listen, they're definitely useful, and, listen, people came here on a beautiful winter's day to get a bit of winter football. There were some positives in the game for both sides, some good football, but it's early doors for both sides.

Obviously, Dublin had a very trialist team out, so two different experiences for two different teams,” he commented.

The Sigerson Cup begins on Tuesday evening, with Laois having a number of players involved on college panels across the country.

“It does affect a number of our players, but it's the same for every kind of team in the country. Sigerson is an important competition, and we have to facilitate that. I think it's important that we do, because university football is a breeding ground for footballers. We support that, big time,” he said.

When asked if there had been any major changes to his panel, McNulty said he was delighted to have the Portarlington players back in training after Christmas.

“Nothing major. Obviously, we've got the Portarlington boys back after Christmas, which is a big boost for us. We're an open panel if fellas show form with university or club, we'll always give them opportunities,” he said.

He also commended the players who made their Laois senior debuts on Saturday.

“We feel we have a stronger panel than last year, and we're excited about the potential of our group. I think they did show character there today. We had a lot of debutants there today, and some of them showed positively. When things weren't going well for the first 10-15 minutes, they still dug in and showed character. They showed bravery to be able to stay in the game against The Dubs,” McNulty added.

McNulty ended the interview by reiterating his focus on building on the positives while addressing the shortcomings from the Dublin defeat.

“There are positives throughout, I think. We need to focus on those positives and address the issues that need to be addressed. Kick-outs, turnovers, and those goal opportunities that we were coughing up too easily,” he ended.