Glenn Ryan hailed his Kildare side's 'bravery' in staging a comeback to draw with Kerry - but insisted that is needed every week if the Lilywhites are to stay in Division 1.
Kildare's first game in the top tier since 2018, when they failed to win a point in any league game, saw them reel in the Kingdom's five point lead in the second half.
Expectations are high with the backroom team that the Lilywhites great Ryan has put together and the comeback got the big Newbridge crowd rocking.
But afterwards, Ryan was very far from getting carried away at the end of the first big day of his tenure.
“That’s the thing, we didn’t get the win," he stressed.
"And if we’re happy with just the fact we didn’t get wins and we’re competitive we’re not going to go too far, we’ll end up in the same position again.
"We’re not going to play down the fact we got a point so we’ll take it.
"But there are a lot of things we have to look at that we have to get right because we could have left a point behind us."
Ryan did acknowledge that the occasion was an important one, given it's the start of something new for the football-mad but success-starved county.
"Well obviously it's a special day for me, it's a special day I hope for the players," he said.
"It's all about the players. If I hope for one thing during this league it's that the focus becomes about the players and not on the fellahs on the sideline.
"They're the ones doing all the work and they're the people who are going to deliver anything here.
"But it's great that there was a crowd and that people came expecting a certain level of performance, and I hope we did enough to get them back the next day.
"I don't think there was any lack of effort in the first half, maybe we challenged a little bit better in the second and maybe we started trying to do the things that we think might improve us.
"I think they showed great bravery to go for the game rather than sitting back and maybe be content to put up a brave face.
"If you do that in this division you won't be in it for too long."
Next up is the trip to Donegal on Sunday. So, no let up.
"Yeah, we have to get these fellahs recovered and get them back doing something Monday evening," said Ryan.
"It's a whole different dynamic next week, it's great you can jump in your car and waltz in here but we have to get ourselves organised for a different set of preparations.
"But these lads are used to it, more used to it than I am. So, they'll probably tell us what to do!".
Whether Fergal Conway and the Naas contingent, including Eoin Doyle, that recently reached the All-Ireland club SFC semi-finals will be involved remains to be seen.
"We'll see during the week," Ryan commented.
"If they're right, they'll be on the pitch, if they're not, they won't. There's plenty of time.
"The hurry is to get fellahs right, not to get them on the pitch. When they're right, they'll start."
And commenting on his decision to bring former Kerry great Paul Galvin on board, Ryan said: "There's plenty of emphasis in our Games that's taken people's focus away from the simple, basic things, they're the skills.
"We always try to work on the skills but maybe with Paul there we might be able to focus a bit more on them.
"Looking at it today, there's plenty of work to be done."
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