Former Déise football boss John 'Jackson' Kiely expects The Nire to retain the Conway Cup this season. The Ballymacarbry side start their Waterford SFC campaign against great rivals Stradbally on Saturday night.
"I'd be quite confident that The Nire will win it," Kiely told WLR's Lár Na Páirce show. "With the way the season is structured, they can go in a hundred per cent on the football, guys like Jamie Barron and Conor Gleeson. I find it very hard to see anyone beating them to be honest with you. Don't write off teams like Clashmore and Gaultier, they're definitely capable of upsetting somebody. I don't think they'll upset The Nire but they could upset Rathgormack or Ballinacourty."
Kiely is in favour of reducing the number of senior football teams in the county. Two clubs will be relegated in 2022 and 2023. By 2025, eight sides will compete in the top flight. "There's no way there's twelve senior teams in Waterford. Eight senior clubs is definitely enough because you'll have a better standard of football."
An all county premier intermediate football championship will be set up next year comprising six teams. The two teams relegated from senior and the two finalists from the Eastern and Western intermediate championships will enter the new competition.
Listen back to the full preview with John 'Jackson' Kiely from Friday's Lár Na Páirce show.
