AS AN EXERCISE in transparency, Ger Brennan’s first act as Dublin manager was a clever move.
Inviting every club in Dublin to nominate suitable players for trials was an exhaustive process, but rooted in best practise that made them the greatest Gaelic football team ever under Jim Gavin.
Nuggets of information on Gavin’s approach have been few and far between, but there was a startling admission from Paddy Quinn, a Tyrone man who made the 2013 league panel after strong performances for Na Fianna.
“One thing he had which was pretty amazing was a depth chart on a screen with hundreds of names on it, like an NFL depth chart,” said Quinn in a 2018 interview in the Irish Independent.
“He had all the names blanked out and said, ‘This is what we will be reviewing as a management team over the course of the year. Players will move up and down as we see fit and we’ll be monitoring club football.’
“His level of detail was unbelievable. It gave off the impression that he’ll be covering every single detail and every player will be assessed fairly.”
Brennan undertook his own survey to get a read on the talent out there by going through the clubs to ask for potential county footballers. It was a simple move, but also very clever.
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For one thing, it empowers the clubs and takes away any lingering feelings that your club is too small to have a county player.
It was also a process that the Dublin ladies management used over the winter.
Any management that host trial games realise there is the potential for chaos. Many see it as a waste of time as players roll on and off. Some players are determined to get noticed and therefore take an extra solo or two. The games scarcely resemble the real thing.
Those on the fringes will try something beyond their capabilities. Coaches and managers are making snap judgements, thin-slicing and going off hunches.
The structure of Brennan’s trials however guarded against some of that stuff. They organised a tournament among six teams, all the games to be played at DCU.
The teams were picked on a regional basis. Each side was managed by a current county coach or former comrade of Brennan, including Michael Darragh MacAuley and Paul Flynn, Dean Rock and Denis Bastick, along with figures such as Coman Goggins and Ciaran Whelan, Alan Brogan, Johnny Magee and Ray Cosgrove.
One hundred and thirty players got a spin, from 36 clubs. The levels ranged from Division 1 to Division 4, Senior ‘A’ football to Junior ‘A’ football.
How many we will see to have burrowed their way through that process and onto the senior panel, we will get a chance to see on Saturday evening when they meet Donegal in the opening Division 1 football league game.
In their first O’Byrne Cup game, a 4-14 to 1-17 win over Laois in Ratheniska, only the hardened Dublin club football nerd would have been familiar with the names.
Dublin hopefuls Jack Feehan and Páidí White audition in the O'Byrne Cup. Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO
Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO / INPHO
It was a similar story in their semi-final loss to Kildare, 1-22 to 1-13, with eight subs getting minutes, allowing for the unlimited number of replacements in the competition.
Given how low-key their preparations have been, and with Donegal putting out strong teams as they won the Dr McKenna Cup, one popular bookmaker has set Dublin’s price as 6/4 while Donegal are at 8/13. When was the last time that Dublin were priced as the underdogs for a game in Croke Park?
While the trials process was underway and throughout the O’Byrne Cup, a separate panel of recognised Dublin players were training by themselves.
Only John Small has retired, while Stephen Cluxton is now on the coaching staff. Nobody would rule out a return for him just yet.
Right now, the goalkeeper jersey seems a straight shootout between Cluxton’s long-term understudy Evan Comerford and Ballyboden St-Enda’s Leinster club winner Hugh O’Sullivan, who Dessie Farrell turned to before bringing Cluxton back in.
Theo Clancy, who looked set for a long career as the Dublin full-back, has been playing midfield for his college UCD.
If he remains there, he could be partnered by Peadar Ó Cofaigh-Byrne, Brian Howard, Killian McGinnis or Ethan Dunne.
In defence, they will look to Lee Gannon and Cian Murphy to step up, as well as Eoin Murchan to remain fully fit.
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All that said, they can still put together one of the stronger attacks around.
If there is a bolter, we have two candidates. Luke Breathnach of Ballinteer St John’s should push on and shove a few other contenders further down the ladder. Ryan O’Dwyer of Ballyboden showed his quality in the club championships and could augment a division with Seán Bugler, Paddy Small, Niall Scully, Cormac Costello and Con O’Callaghan locked and loaded, though there are injury doubts around Ciaran Kilkenny.
One of the trademarks of Gavin’s Dublin side was the lack of leaks or chatter around the panel ahead of campaigns. Even by those standards, Dublin’s build-up to this league has been deathly quiet.
Brennan has played it well so far. Asked about where exactly Dublin lie in the field of contenders, he pointed out that it is somewhere behind Leinster champions Louth, and the Meath side that conquered Dublin in Leinster.
A couple of weeks back though, under the cover of the O’Byrne Cup, something approaching a full-strength Dublin team faced Galway in a challenge match. The crumbs of knowledge around the place suggests it got feisty.
The first round of the league, at home on a Saturday night against Donegal. Who would bet against them?
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130 players, 36 clubs, and a regional tournament: how Dublin have geared up for the league
AS AN EXERCISE in transparency, Ger Brennan’s first act as Dublin manager was a clever move.
Inviting every club in Dublin to nominate suitable players for trials was an exhaustive process, but rooted in best practise that made them the greatest Gaelic football team ever under Jim Gavin.
Nuggets of information on Gavin’s approach have been few and far between, but there was a startling admission from Paddy Quinn, a Tyrone man who made the 2013 league panel after strong performances for Na Fianna.
“One thing he had which was pretty amazing was a depth chart on a screen with hundreds of names on it, like an NFL depth chart,” said Quinn in a 2018 interview in the Irish Independent.
“He had all the names blanked out and said, ‘This is what we will be reviewing as a management team over the course of the year. Players will move up and down as we see fit and we’ll be monitoring club football.’
“His level of detail was unbelievable. It gave off the impression that he’ll be covering every single detail and every player will be assessed fairly.”
Brennan undertook his own survey to get a read on the talent out there by going through the clubs to ask for potential county footballers. It was a simple move, but also very clever.
For one thing, it empowers the clubs and takes away any lingering feelings that your club is too small to have a county player.
It was also a process that the Dublin ladies management used over the winter.
Those on the fringes will try something beyond their capabilities. Coaches and managers are making snap judgements, thin-slicing and going off hunches.
The structure of Brennan’s trials however guarded against some of that stuff. They organised a tournament among six teams, all the games to be played at DCU.
The teams were picked on a regional basis. Each side was managed by a current county coach or former comrade of Brennan, including Michael Darragh MacAuley and Paul Flynn, Dean Rock and Denis Bastick, along with figures such as Coman Goggins and Ciaran Whelan, Alan Brogan, Johnny Magee and Ray Cosgrove.
One hundred and thirty players got a spin, from 36 clubs. The levels ranged from Division 1 to Division 4, Senior ‘A’ football to Junior ‘A’ football.
How many we will see to have burrowed their way through that process and onto the senior panel, we will get a chance to see on Saturday evening when they meet Donegal in the opening Division 1 football league game.
In their first O’Byrne Cup game, a 4-14 to 1-17 win over Laois in Ratheniska, only the hardened Dublin club football nerd would have been familiar with the names.
It was a similar story in their semi-final loss to Kildare, 1-22 to 1-13, with eight subs getting minutes, allowing for the unlimited number of replacements in the competition.
Given how low-key their preparations have been, and with Donegal putting out strong teams as they won the Dr McKenna Cup, one popular bookmaker has set Dublin’s price as 6/4 while Donegal are at 8/13. When was the last time that Dublin were priced as the underdogs for a game in Croke Park?
While the trials process was underway and throughout the O’Byrne Cup, a separate panel of recognised Dublin players were training by themselves.
Only John Small has retired, while Stephen Cluxton is now on the coaching staff. Nobody would rule out a return for him just yet.
Right now, the goalkeeper jersey seems a straight shootout between Cluxton’s long-term understudy Evan Comerford and Ballyboden St-Enda’s Leinster club winner Hugh O’Sullivan, who Dessie Farrell turned to before bringing Cluxton back in.
Theo Clancy, who looked set for a long career as the Dublin full-back, has been playing midfield for his college UCD.
If he remains there, he could be partnered by Peadar Ó Cofaigh-Byrne, Brian Howard, Killian McGinnis or Ethan Dunne.
In defence, they will look to Lee Gannon and Cian Murphy to step up, as well as Eoin Murchan to remain fully fit.
All that said, they can still put together one of the stronger attacks around.
If there is a bolter, we have two candidates. Luke Breathnach of Ballinteer St John’s should push on and shove a few other contenders further down the ladder. Ryan O’Dwyer of Ballyboden showed his quality in the club championships and could augment a division with Seán Bugler, Paddy Small, Niall Scully, Cormac Costello and Con O’Callaghan locked and loaded, though there are injury doubts around Ciaran Kilkenny.
One of the trademarks of Gavin’s Dublin side was the lack of leaks or chatter around the panel ahead of campaigns. Even by those standards, Dublin’s build-up to this league has been deathly quiet.
Brennan has played it well so far. Asked about where exactly Dublin lie in the field of contenders, he pointed out that it is somewhere behind Leinster champions Louth, and the Meath side that conquered Dublin in Leinster.
A couple of weeks back though, under the cover of the O’Byrne Cup, something approaching a full-strength Dublin team faced Galway in a challenge match. The crumbs of knowledge around the place suggests it got feisty.
The first round of the league, at home on a Saturday night against Donegal. Who would bet against them?
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