Andy Comerford has resigned as Kildare hurling manager in the wake of last Saturday's Christy Ring Cup semi-final defeat by Westmeath.

The former Kilkenny All-Ireland winning captain came to the conclusion after the 3-19 to 0-18 loss to the Lake County that he had taken the team as far as he could. During his three years at the helm, Kildare won the NHL Division 3 title last year, but were relegated back to the same division this spring.

"I had made up my mind after the Westmeath game, but obviously I wanted to speak to my fellow selectors and the Hurling Board before making any public comment," he said in the Irish Examiner.

"After we won the Division Three title, the Hurling Board asked me to stay on for another year. After a lot of deliberation, and weighing up the pros and cons, I agreed to do so. It was a very enjoyable and rewarding three years with Kildare and I learned a lot in my first experience as a manager.

"But in this year's league, it was a bridge too far for us in Division 2, and really we were out of our depth at that level.

"We weren't on a par with the likes of Down, Kerry, Carlow and Westmeath, and we were well behind Wexford, Laois and Clare."

Comerford was optimistic that Kildare would "kick on" after winning the NHL Division 3 title last year.

"I thought we might kick on to greater things, but unfortunately it was not be. Of course, we didn't retain our place in Division Two, and then we came a cropper against a very good Westmeath team last Saturday. On the day, we just didn't have as much ammunition as Westmeath," he added. Tweet

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