Dublin start rebuilding process in Killarney

ONLY FIVE survivors from the team that exited the championship last August; two backs now in the forwards; a new full-back line.

At first glance, it’s a largely unrecognisable Dublin selection, and yet manager Pat Gilroy insists there is nothing purposely experimental about the team to play Kerry in Sunday’s opening round of the Allianz National Football League at Killarney.

“That’s the strongest we have available,” said Gilroy. “We’re forced into this. It’s not experimentation. With injuries to some players, we’ve been forced to play a lot of new people here. But in saying that, a lot of these guys were probably the best players in the Dublin club championship that has just happened.”

That is true – Ross and Rory O’Carroll, already seasoned defenders with Kilmacud Crokes, make up the full-back line with Ballymun’s Philly McMahon. Michael McAuley from Dublin champions Ballyboden St Enda’s is named at centre forward.

There are also starting places for James McCarthy at wing back and Kevin McManamon, from beaten Dublin finalists St Judes, at corner forward, alongside Blaine Kelly. Alan Hubbard and David Henry, better known as defenders, help make up the attack – and Eamonn Fennell is named is midfield despite on the ongoing dispute surrounding his transfer request from O’Toole’s.

Despite the nature of Sunday’s opposition – and the unavoidable references to last summer’s 17-point hammering – Gilroy is confident his untested line-up are capable of taking on the purposefully experimental AllIreland champions.

“The full-back line, looking at the club championship last year, that’s probably the three strongest players. They’re specialists in those positions. It’s a big step up for them, though. Rory has a little bit of experience there, but for the other two guys it is a big step up for Sunday. But they’re good guys and confident guys.

“Up front, Michael McAuley was very good in the club championship and he’s done very well for us since he’s come in. The same with Kevin McMenamon.

“David (Henry) plays in the forwards for his club and he brings a very good use of the ball, brings us a different option. Alan (Hubbard) plays there for his club, and in the backs for the club. He’s a versatile guy. Probably the only place he can’t play is midfield. He’s versatile. All in all, it’s a fairly mobile team with good balance in it given the amount of injures we’ve had.”

Among the more regular starters ruled out through injury are Alan Brogan, Barry Cahill, Ger Brennan, Conal Keaney, Darren Magee and Tomás Quinn – while Bernard Brogan, Paul Casey, Bryan Cullen and Kevin Bonner are listed among the substitutes.

It means the only survivors from last year’s defeat to Kerry are Stephen Cluxton, Henry, Paul Griffin, Ross McConnell and Paul Flynn.

But while he’s not necessarily experimenting, Gilroy is a long way off deciding on a settled starting 15: “The reality of it is, if you start nailing down teams you may as well ask the other 15 lads to not bother coming up training. All through last year, we were really pushing guys to push other fellas on to the team.”

If Sunday in Killarney does represent something of a revenge match for last August, Gilroy was having none of it: “The fact that this is Kerry, whatever happens on Sunday doesn’t make up for last August. If we go out and win or lose by a point, it doesn’t bear any relation to what happened last year. That stays as is and that’s just the way it is.

“Realistically, we have huge gaps to close and there’s a lot of new people there. You never know what can happen in sport, but still it’s a massive task for us and we’ll have to be patient.”

DUBLIN (NFL v Kerry): S Cluxton; Ross O'Carroll, Rory O'Carroll, P McMahon; P Griffin, C O'Sullivan, J McCarthy; E Fennell, R McConnell; A Hubbard, M MacAuley, P Flynn; D Henry, B Kelly, K McManamon.