A trip to Waterford on Sunday for the opening round of the Allianz HL Division 1A will focus the minds of the Kilkenny players, according to All-Star corner-back Paul Murphy.

12 months ago the Cats diced with relegation but Murphy says they will have to hit the ground running this time around.

"We couldn't hope for a better start," the Danesfort clubman pointed out to The Irish Independent.

"That is as far as we're looking because if you looked past it, you could find yourself in relegation trouble again.

"Each year that goes on, players are hitting the ground running when it comes to the League and it's just getting more intense. Ten years ago, the League just wasn't as intense as it is now.

"You see the two League semi-finals in Nowlan Park last year and the intensity was huge.

"It's upping and upping each year and players are getting fitter and more players competing for jerseys."

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