Kildare selector Niall Carew has welcomed the appointment of Pat McEnaney as referee for Sunday's All-Ireland football semi-final against Down.

The Monaghan official didn't endear himself to Kildare fans when he awarded a couple of debatable frees to Dublin in the closing stages of last year's Leinster final, but Carew still believes he is one of the best referees out there.

"Pat McEnaney has been one of the top referees for the last decade.. "He has proven that many times and he proved it again the way he refereed the Leinster final last year," he said.

"We were a little disappointed that there were three frees given at the end that we thought were a little soft and gave Dublin the chance to pull away from us but these things go against you at times and with you at other times. I have no doubt but that Pat will call it as he sees it on Sunday." Tweet

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