GAA Talk

Don’t get carried away! Anthony Daly, the Dublin hurling manager, has warned that his arrival in the capital will not necessarily guarantee that hurling’s sleeping giant will awaken.

Daly’s appointment as manager has led to unprecedented levels of hype and hope for the small ball game. Expectations have been further elevated following the stunning defeat of Galway in the National League, their second of their Division One campaign.

Speaking to Setanta Ireland, the Clare native admitted that there was huge potential in the capital, but he warned that transferring underage success to the senior stage is not as straightforward as it appears.

Rather than bring instant success, Daly says his remit is to bring Dublin hurling to a new level of competitiveness within Leinster, having failed to make a real impact in the province despite some near misses in recent years.

“I can’t say that we will guarantee anything in terms of success,” Daly said.

“There is no point in shooting from the hip like that and maybe rash stuff. I think it’s a work in process, Dublin hurling, and certainly there has been massive work done well before I came, from the previous five or six years, maybe longer.”

“So we will try and continue on with that. If we can take it up a level, that would be great. That’s what we are charged with, the Dublin county board were very specific in what they want to so, to try and bring hurling to the next level.”

Daly says that he has the “raw materials” at his disposal to turn Dublin into a force and his task is to nurture the talent and make sure his young charges make the step-up to senior hurling.

“Certainly the potential is there. Ability-wise there is no doubt that they [Dublin] have that sort of raw material, the first touch is good and they would have pedigree as well.

“A lot of them would have Leinster minors, Leinster under-21s, All-Ireland colleges medals. They wouldn’t have that fear factor way down inside them that they couldn’t win.”

“Yet at senior level it is a whole new ball game. We have often seen. I saw it in Clare with that minor team we had in ’97, we got very few seniors off it.

“We might have got one, maybe two but they didn’t play too much so minor success doesn’t guarantee you anything.

“It is really about character at senior level, who’ll be willing to stick it out and develop their skill enough to make it as a good inter-county senior and that is a tall order for lads.

“Not all fellas are willing to do that. There are crucial years between 18 and 22 and some of them don’t just follow through and you lose them very easily.”

Daly says he is looking for a specific type of character to take the Dubs to the next level, players who will thrive in the big atmosphere generated by championship Sundays.

“We’re looking for a fella that will be able to handle the big day really,” Daly added.

“When he goes into Croke Park in a Leinster quarter-final, a Leinster final, maybe an All-Ireland quarter-final, semi-final if we can develop it, that he won’t ‘brick himself’ let’s say.

“He’ll handle the situation and he’ll take it on board, he’ll step up to the mark. Some fellas when they go down to Thurles on a big day, or when they go to Croke Park on a big day, they go down a mark.

“We need guys who will go up a mark, who will say: ‘this is what I trained for, this is what I spent my youth working towards, and I am not going to brick it now that it’s the day. I’m going to really have a go and give it my best.’

“And to be able to look at yourself in the mirror tomorrow morning and say: ‘look, it didn’t work out’ or it didn’t work out but you still gave it your best and you really got the best out of yourself.

“Sometimes you will be beaten by a better opponent along the way - a better team – but at least that you emptied yourself and had a go at it. That is the kind of fella we are looking for.”