A week after Roscommon announced that they were withdrawing from the senior hurling championship, Kerry have said they too are considering a similar course of action. Earlier this year, the county debated the future of the county team and it was decided to persevere with senior hurling for the time being.

County secretary Tony O'Keeffe is one of those who disagree with the view within the county that Kerry should plough ahead with senior status. "Personally, I don't. Getting wallopings in the National League means that by the time the championship comes along, morale suffers. It's the nature of being a weak county that you're weak for most of the time. We were strong in the early 1990s in that we were able to compete with top teams, but that's not the case any more."

For a brief period, Kerry were competitive. Under the management of John Meyler, the county won its first senior championship match since the 1920s and attained Division One status when that was accorded to only eight teams. Other achievements included defeating Clare in a play-off between the winners of Division Two and Three and winning a weekend in London.

For the first Division One fixture in the county's history, Clare - then All-Ireland champions only a few weeks - came to Tralee and were beaten in October 1995.

"We beat Clare and competed with Tipperary and the Kilkennys of the world. But in recent times, we've had some bad beatings."

Yet the decision taken some months ago was to keep going. "We debated the best direction and particularly took the views of the players into account. But since then I'd say the mood has changed."

Although Kerry are currently a Division One side, it is as members of a two-section, 14-county division which contains a fair amount of dead wood and more or less guarantees even modest counties that they won't be relegated. Kerry ended up well adrift at the bottom of their section and lost heavily to Derry, who finished last in theirs, when the teams met in a play-off.

"We were heavily beaten in practically all our games. Antrim and Dublin were the only ones where we competed. I think the manager (Michael O'Halloran) has done a great job with what's available. He laid it down from the start that it was `no train, no play' and I think that's been well-received among the players," says O'Keeffe. "

Kerry could still remain a topflight side should they win a further play-off against the winners of Division Two. O'Keeffe doesn't welcome the prospect. "I think it does nothing for Kerry hurling to stay in Division One. Before we got to the first division, we competed. Now we're not able to."

In championship terms, Kerry's challenge is exacerbated by the high standard of Munster competition. Having defeated Waterford in an historic match in 1993, they were simply drummed off the pitch by Tipperary in the semi-finals.

"I believe we are the best of the rest," says O'Keeffe. "Over any given period, we win more All-Irelands at B level than the Meaths, Westmeaths and Carlows. They may beat us the odd time, but if you look at it on a consistent basis we win more. In recent years we have won an under-16 B Munster title, All-Ireland B under-16 and All-Ireland minor B. But the gap is huge after that.

"Another problem we have is isolation. Meath and Westmeath and the Leinster counties are all reasonably near each other, but we've no one on our level close by. It makes a difference."

Munster SHC - Kerry v Cork, Killarney, Saturday, 7.00.