Fennell says squad worried Gilroy will go

THERE IS growing concern that Pat Gilroy may not continue as Dublin football manager. Although he remains undecided on whether to continue for a fourth year, midfielder Eamonn Fennell says there is real fear within the Dublin squad that Gilroy will walk out on the high of winning the county’s first senior All-Ireland in 16 years.

“We haven’t really talked yet as a group about what happens next,” says Fennell, “but really the first thing for us now is trying to convince Pat to stay on. Because it is a big fear, that he’ll go. Genuinely.

“I’d love for him to stay on. I have so much respect for him. He’s been successful, every part of his life. I’ve learnt so much from him, and want to continue to learn from him.

“We’ve lost Micky (Whelan, selector) already and we don’t want anyone else to go. We’re after getting so far with this, we’d like to keep it together, and see what else we can do. Definitely there’s more in us. (There’s) so many lads that didn’t get a run the last day. Or lads that had injuries, that only flourished towards the end. Their chance will come in the winter, and after seeing what the lads did, will all want a piece of that.”

Gilroy, a 42-year-old father of four and managing director of Dalkia Ireland, saw his three-year term end after last Sunday week’s victory over Kerry at Croke Park – and has refused to commit to his future since:

“There are an awful lot of people who support me, my wife, my family, my work, and I need to spend some time talking to them before making any decision,” he said on Friday’s Late Late Show. “But with or without me these guys will go on to greater things.”

Fennell – who came on for the last 10 minutes of the final win over Kerry, replacing Denis Bastick – says Gilroy has made a significant difference to his overall game:

“When I first came in under Paul Caffrey my only game was to win high ball. That was number one, and the rest would follow. But Pat has really expressed what he wants me to do as a midfielder. To get my tackle count up, get up and down the pitch a bit more.

“Pat has really pointed me in the right direction, to become an all-round footballer, and the great thing about the Dublin team at the moment is that there are people there to help you all the time, on the pitch and off the pitch. Some of us need that help at times”

Fennell, like the rest of his Dublin team-mates, has enjoyed over a full week of celebrations, but these came to a rather abrupt end last night as he was set to line out for St Vincent’s in the long overdue resumption of the Dublin club championship, with a showdown against Trinity Gaels.

Fennell confirmed Dublin defender and St Vincent’s club mate Paul Conlon yesterday emigrated to Australia, and is therefore unlikely to be part of the Dublin panel in 2012.

Yet for Fennell, who spent three years trying to clear his transfer from O’Tooles, there is every reason to be excited about the return to club action: “I haven’t been involved in club championship for three years, so I’m really looking forward to getting back. I’m not exactly in the state I want to be. I went to the gym for the first time last night. And I was sweating before I even walked in. But I want to do well with Vincent’s. I’ve been fighting for the transfer for so long, so I’m going to try whatever I can to push the lads on.”

Just a year ago there was some doubt if Fennell would ever play for Dublin again, before a hip injury delayed his start to the season. Yet he never lost hope, even in the darkest days: “If I was being totally honest I always tried to put that stuff to the back of my head and only control what I could control, which was my own training. I definitely had one or two nights thinking ‘what’s going to happen?’, but Pat was always very reassuring that it would happen.”

THE GAA have announced Playing for Life as their official charity for 2012, with a special project in Ethiopia planned for next January. The charity’s work focuses on self-development by providing education facilities, skills training and HIV/Aids awareness through sport. Log on to www.playingforlife.ie or email info@playingforlife.ie.