ON a day when everyone in saffron showed up, Antrim's players left the Corrigan Park pitch a little unsure of how to feel about the draw with Dublin.

On one hand there was a little bit of disappointment they couldn't get over the line, but then there was the realisation that an 18-point hammering at the hands of the same opposition in the Championship two years previous became a share of the spoils and a sign of clear progress.

Antrim's return to the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship was always going to be a test of whether they could make the leap from League to Championship and within minutes those questions were answered as Antrim flew out of the traps, thundered into challenges and played at a high pace.

There were some huge shifts put in as players found another gear and Seaan Elliott was one who epitomised the Antrim effort with two points - one from a sideline - and also doing the hard work in the build-up to Conor Johnston's goal.

"It just shows how far we've come that we're coming off the pitch disappointed with one point instead of the two," he said.

"We'd five weeks off from the last League game when Tipperary gave us a bit of a trouncing up here.

"But we've worked hard and the whole mantra over those five weeks was to track your man. You saw that as they didn't get any easy scores and shows we're going in the right direction."

Dublin had been Antrim'e nemesis with six wins in as many games between the teams over the past three years.

Much of that was to do with the physical advantages the Dubs held as Antrim struggled to get any change out of the rucks, but it was a different story at the weekend as the Saffrons more than held their own on a day that suited a bigger team.

"Everyone is lifting big weight," Elliott said of the work going on behind the scenes.

"We're in the gym two or three nights a week and that is showing.

"I'd say we won most of the battles on the ground, getting bodies in. We're only getting started."

The Dunloy man admitted he had not been firing on all cylinders in the League, perhaps unsurprisingly given the efforts he and his club mates had put into the Cuchullains' run to the All-Ireland final, but reinvigorated, he was back to his best on Saturday after a good build-up into the Championship.

"I struggled a bit this year," he reflected.

"I don't know if it was down to the longevity of the club (campaign) with Dunloy, but those five weeks really helped me to get fully back into the swing of things, so hopefully that has me ready for Championship and to give my best."

Another huge effort will be required at Wexford Park on Saturday as Antrim head to the south-east to face a team that lost its opener in Galway on Saturday.

Their draw against Dublin will have given them a boost as they know they are up to the pitch of Championship hurling.

Points, not performances, is the only currency that matters and while this week will be a case of letting the bodies recover from Saturday's exertions before building up to another big test, but one they will approach with intent.

"We're not here to just give teams points, we're here to compete," Elliott stressed.

"From the start of the year, we said we are here to win and it was good to show that today in front of the people that were here that we're there.

"The next thing is just to recover. We've all the work done over the last five weeks, so it's just about getting the bodies right again for another big shift next week. Hopefully, we can go a bit further than today."