Meath's Kevin Reilly is surprised by the Kildare reaction to his challenge on Paddy Brophy twelve days ago.

Lilywhites manager Jason Ryan this week referenced the tackle more than a week after it happened, claiming that the Royal County full back was intent on "making an impact" when he connected with the Kildare attacker during the first half of the Leinster SFC semi-final at Croke Park on June 29th.

But Reilly insists it was an innocuous tackle and that there was no intent on his behalf: "Jason Ryan is entitled to his opinion," the Navan O'Mahonys clubman says in The Irish Examiner.

"If you look at the incident which I did, Brophy kind of slid in to catch the ball and he fumbled it. When he fumbled it he actually tried to pick himself up off the ground to go after it and that's when we collided.

"It was nothing more than a collision and I think, being honest, that it has been blown out of all proportion. I've been playing intercounty football ten years. I have been sent off once for two yellow cards for more persistent fouling than anything else.

"In terms of physicality, any full back or any player is going to be physical and if you are not at this stage the way the game is you are going to be sitting on the sideline and somebody else is going to be in there.

"I was challenging for a ball. I actually fell over him. There was nothing more than that. You go as hard as you can for the ball as long as it is there. But in this case it was actually a collision and we fell over.

"I am surprised by the reaction. The referee was blowing for a lot of frees for minimal contact. That wasn't a free and he was in a decent position for it. I thought nothing of it at the time." Tweet

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