Within the absence of inter-county matches, and with most county finals nonetheless a distant speck on the autumnal horizon, there’s not a lot to speak about within the GAA proper now other than managers coming and managers going.
ast week, the second Déise coming of Davy Fitzgerald was the story that dominated. Whereas this was a significant improvement for Waterford, it additionally shunted the highlight in one other route, straight up the east coast.
Eleven counties will compete in subsequent 12 months’s Liam MacCarthy race. Proper now, simply a kind of counties remains to be trying to find a supervisor – Dublin.
It’s almost six weeks since Mattie Kenny’s departure. In regular circumstances, you’d by no means hear stakeholders fretting a few managerial emptiness in August … however the GAA calendar has been skewed by the brand new split-season,
Dublin haven’t performed a match since Could 21, the membership championship is in full movement and all speak concerning the subsequent supervisor is totally speculative.
Possibly, simply perhaps, the county board will drop a bombshell announcement to match the box-office arrival of Anthony Daly, in late 2008, and even the left-field transfer for Pat Gilroy 9 years later.
However, whereas Dublin GAA chiefs ponder, rivals have been appearing much more decisively. Cork had changed Kieran Kingston with Pat Ryan earlier than you could possibly shout ‘Up the Rebels’. Tipperary acted ruthlessly to axe Colm Bonnar – after which swiftly set up Liam Cahill. As soon as Brian Cody known as time, Kilkenny didn’t dally of their choice of Derek Lyng, their first appointment in 24 years.
Now with Waterford going again to the long run with Davy, the main target switches to Dublin. There was speak of the same Groundhog Day transfer for Gilroy, but it’s unclear whether or not his circumstances have modified to permit him end what he began in 2018.
‘Twin star’ Anthony Cunningham, a coach below Gilroy, has departed Roscommon and could possibly be on their radar. Different names floated embrace Eddie Brennan, Derek McGrath, even Joe Fortune, who has the Dublin membership and underage CV. Just one obstacle: he’s at present managing Westmeath. Fortune’s predecessor, Shane O’Brien, has additionally been linked.
Whoever is up subsequent will inherit a workforce that had grown stale and misplaced its momentum in the direction of the latter half of Kenny’s four-year tenure.
Dublin hurling has hit a fork within the highway. Get this appointment proper, and perhaps they are often regenerated with contemporary blood. But when they get it improper?
“The truth that they’re not successful underage titles has been a difficulty,” says Maurice O’Brien, the previous Limerick and adopted Dublin hurler below Daly. “With the inhabitants, with the standard of the membership scene up there, why isn’t it progressing right into a extra aggressive senior workforce?
“Even in our days they’d the on days and off days, however there was extra consistency. Is {that a} managerial factor or is it the consistency of gamers from underage, not reaching these success ranges and perhaps not anticipating it of themselves at senior degree? I feel they’re at a crossroads fully. The factor might take an terrible dip if this one doesn’t go proper, I really feel, for Dublin.”
O’Brien wonders is it time for somebody from the ‘Dalo’ technology, “the Conal Keaneys, Stephen Hineys, Johnny McCaffreys of this world, to take that plunge and create that connection again with that workforce? You had nice leaders there, they usually’re not being talked about.”
Former Dublin boss Humphrey Kelleher argues that the main target needs to be on bringing in a full-time director of hurling as a result of there isn’t a short-term repair.
“A brand new supervisor, whoever he’s, just isn’t going to make a lot of a distinction in actual phrases,” Kelleher claims.
“You would possibly get a few Nationwide League wins however we aren’t succesful – sadly – of having the ability to compete towards the highest three or 4 counties within the nation.
“Hurling is an awfully skilful sport, and subsequently it’s a must to get extraordinary, skilful coaches to teach the coaches to the extent that we should be.
“If you happen to simply take Limerick and have a look at what they’ve accomplished, the blueprint is there for everyone to see.
“I do know they’re clichés, however should you maintain doing the identical bloody factor we’re going to finish up with the identical outcomes. And that’s what Dublin are at, for the time being.
“So whoever is available in, I’ll be rooting for him. However I feel he’s actually on a hiding to nothing when it comes to Dublin hurling into the close to future.”
