Ian O'Riordan talks to Louth manager Paddy Carr about his team's preparations for an early and low-key start to the football championship

Louth don't expect any grand fanfare when they open the 2002 football championship against Longford on Sunday, yet manager Paddy Carr reckons his side has prepared just as meticulously as the high-profile counties.

The new qualifier series has further diluted the general interest in the game. Still, Louth are thinking only of the direct route through Leinster and Carr sees no reason to dismiss his county so easily.

"People look at the different provinces and automatically take the two or three teams that they expect to do well," he says. "But our guys have put in an enormous amount of work and preparations as well, and I know there would be very little difference in the hard work we do compared to, say, counties like Galway.

"I mean I've a lot of admiration for the modern players. They put in an extraordinary amount of work, and hopefully the Louth players can deliver on that now.

There are grounds for Carr's optimism. Consistent league form, which ended just a point short of possible promotion from Division Two, has been gaining momentum and although Longford got the better of them a year ago, Carr believes the team is more balanced this season.

Four players will get championship debuts in Navan on Sunday - goalkeeper Stuart Reynolds, Colin Goss, Colin Quinn and Barry Clarke. But there are less conspicuous changes from last year too. Only two players, Simon Gerard and John Neary, remain from the regular defence of last year.

"You tend to select teams anyway on their form and how they've applied themselves over the last few months. Some of these are new to championship football, but they've all been involved at different stages of the league and wouldn't be short of experience.

"People assume this is almost the same team as last year. There has been a lot of rebuilding done and we think we have a good balance now, and that's why we're looking forward so much to Sunday."

The most notable absentee from their defence is Stephen Melia, retired but previously a fixed name on the Louth team since 1985. He had gone 15 years without missing a championship match for the county.

"Football has its own sort of momentum," says Carr, "but it's up to managers to look for fresh talent. We've not concentrated on the individuals we may have lost. We've just asked everyone to give the necessary commitment and everyone with us now has done that."

Even with a satisfying league run, Carr has all the time been building towards the summer. "All through the league there was the backdrop of the championship preparations, because I believed we had to keep an eye on the summer. I was conscious we may take a few hits because of that, and though that happened to some extent, overall it was a consistent campaign.

"Losing against Antrim in the last kick of the match more or less ended our chances of making the play-offs, but I like to be showing the form at the end of spring and I think that was the case here. Our win over Kerry was obviously the most notable, but I think we showed great character as well to beat Limerick."

First prize on Sunday is the shot at Kildare in the second round, and even with the consolation of the qualifier, Carr has identified his target.

"Of course an extended run is what you want, and a direct route to the Leinster final. Louth did very well on the scenic route last year, and people forget there was only a kick of the ball against Westmeath. We have great respect for Longford but the chance is there to take on Kildare, and we all know the sort the attention that goes with that."

The Leinster championship rolls on with the meeting of Laois and Wicklow on Monday. Laois have made just one adjustment from the side that fell to Kerry in the Division Two final last Sunday, moving Damien Ryan to corner back in place of Pauric Leonard, with a vacancy left at wing back in the hope Joe Higgins is passed fit. Wicklow have a host of injury problems but will name a team this evening.

LOUTH (SF v Longford): S Reynolds; S Gerard, A Hoey, D Brennan; J Neary, C Goss, P McGinnity; K Reilly, C Quinn; B Clarke, C Grimes, O McDonnell; M Farrelly, M Stanfield, JP Rooney. Subs: P Brennan, A Page, D Shevlin, B Keenan, D Reilly, N McDonnell, C O'Hanlon, K Lynch, C Kelly.

LAOIS (SF v Wicklow): F Byron; D Ryan, T Kelly, P McDonald; D Conroy, K Fitzpatrick, AN Other; N Garvan, P Clancy; I Fitzgerald, D McEvoy, M Lawlor; B McDonald, G Ramsbottom, C Conway.