IT IS 20 years since he blazed a trail across the Gaelic football sky.
Jason Sherlock was the teenager who lit up the 1995 All-Ireland championship – a blend of pace, exuberance and skill with a killer eye for a goal.
Dublin swept the boards that summer and he was the new kid on the block as they lifted Sam Maguire.
Two decades on, he’s still at the coalface of Dublin football.
Last winter Jim Gavin brought him on board to the inter-county scene as a forwards coach and now they’re gearing up Sunday’s Leinster last four battle with Kildare.
“I have always mixed my coaching staff even at U21 level,” revealed Gavin.
“I think it brings a freshness to it. Players are used to a particular themes and concepts coming from a manager and to have a skills coach like Jason who is a deep thinker on the game and thinks outside the box.
“He is very articulate and can get his point across in a very meaningful way to the players and they enjoy the challenges he poses them.
“It has been a positive step forward to have him involved.”
Gavin didn’t waste time after the loss to Donegal last August before plotting for 2015 and deciding to recruit Sherlock.
“I would have went to the county board the week after the All-Ireland semi-final to plan for the years ahead and that’s when that process began.
Demands
“Some people left the management team for personal reasons and as volunteers there is big demands on both the backroom and coaching staff.
“That just gave an opportunity to bring Jason in. It has been very positive.”
Gavin would have first recognised Sherlock’s coaching abilities when they played together – the pair were teammates on that 1995 winning side.
“Probably when I played with him. Listening to him speak about primarily forward play and his ideas and concepts and strategies they were always interesting.
“He’s got a broad range of sporting backgrounds from basketball to soccer and obviously he has achieved an awful lot in Gaelic football.
Developed
“He developed himself as a player each year he played inter-county level. That’s what impressed me about him, that he wanted to grow as a player.
“I can see him transfer those skills to his coaching remit. Those who have a desire and passion for their sport, they are the people I normally go after.”
