GAELIC GAMES: Gavin Cummiskeytalks to the Dublin under-21 ace about life as an All-Ireland finalist.

"I wouldn't envisage an 82,000 sell-out but 50 or 60,000 definitely. People would jump on the bandwagon just like they do for the footballers. I'm not going to complain if I'm playing in front of them so I'd imagine so, yeah."

When a young sportsman starts a group interview with, "Will this actually be in print, lads?" you have an inkling what follows will be interesting. Even when the questions lack sparkle, Dublin hurler Ross O'Carroll puts some gloss on the answers.

The opening remark was a response to a query about whether he expects the Dublin populace to jump on the hurling bandwagon, much as they do with the footballers every summer.

"Even in my area (Stillorgan), which would be a rugby heartland, the young fellas are flying around with hurls," he says. "It's not something you might have seen 10 years ago. So it's great to see Dublin hurling taking off as it is.

"Castleknock this year in the Féile and Kilmacud two years ago - I'd say minor hurling and underage hurling here are on a par with the likes of Kilkenny and Cork."

Driving through the leafy south Dublin suburb of Dalkey the other night O'Carroll spied a group of young guys heading down the road with hurleys. Probably bound for Cuala GAA club.

In case you haven't been paying attention, Dublin play the winners of Saturday's Cork-Galway match in the under-21 All-Ireland final at Croke Park on September 9th. It's been cleverly pencilled in before the camogie final for the second successive year.

A graduate of Oatlands College in Stillorgan and now firmly part of the Dublin senior team, the Kilmacud Crokes forward will need to play a substantial role if Dublin are to deliver on the promise of their underage structures.

He's done it before. In July 2005, he was with the Dublin minors when they commanded national attention by beating Kilkenny and Wexford to claim their first provincial title in 22 years. He also represented the minor footballers.

Last year O'Carroll went to war with Séamus Hickey of St Flannan's in the All-Ireland Colleges final, which the Dublin selection won 1-11 to 0-11. O'Carroll got more change out of the prodigious Limerick defender than the Tipperary magician Eoin Kelly managed over three games this summer.

Next, he broke into the county panel, making his championship debut in the agonising Leinster semi-final defeat to Wexford.

A fledgling career reached its present eminence with another notable performance in the under-21 Leinster-final victory over Offaly last month, O'Carroll's early goal helping bridge a 35-year ravine.

We have to get the dual question out of the way.

"Yeah, I suppose Dublin underage hurling in the last few years has surpassed the footballers. You have the All-Ireland colleges, the Leinster minor in 2005, getting to the final in 2004. It's such a good team and if you turn your back on it you're probably going to regret it. This year no lads turned their back on it."

People remain understandably sceptical. Dublin hurling teams have claimed minor titles in recent times (2005 and 2007) only to stumble in the face of Munster opposition (Limerick then Cork this year) come the All-Ireland semi-finals.

The under-21s had the easier passage of a trip north to face the Ulster champions, Derry.

"I don't know about that," muses O'Carroll in response to a query about stage fright.

"I suppose Galway would have a lot of experience of Croke Park at underage level but our lads like (John) McCaffrey, (Tomás) Brady, Keith Dunne and these lads, and the lads that played Kilkenny in 2004 in the Leinster minor final, wouldn't be bothered by stage fright."

There was one more stock question: When will this underage success be transferred to the senior stage?

"I'd give it a couple more years. Possibly next year . . . all we need is a couple more forwards. We already have the backs there and they're pretty stable.

"The minors this year, Peter Kelly in particular is a great left half-back for them and he could come up to senior next year. I suppose that's the ultimate goal, to get up to senior and do well, win a Leinster senior."

That's it. A full interview with Ross O'Carroll without any reference to the fictional, rugby-playing namesake who also hails from a south Dublin stronghold.

It can be taken as a reflection of this young man's potential.