Diarmuid Connolly believes Dublin will call upon Stephen Cluxton between the posts during this year’s championship.
Cluxton (43) made his now seasonal return for the Dubs last weekend as they beat Galway in the league at Croke Park – more than two decades on from his senior debut in 2001.
However, with the introduction of the new rules – and resulting proliferation of goalkeepers surging up the field to add to their team’s attack – it remains to be seen if Dessie Farrell will stick or twist when it comes to his selection at number one.
There is a school of thought that Evan Comerford or Gavin Sheridan might be more comfortable with that roaming role, but while Connolly does not believe Cluxton will play every championship game for Dublin this summer, the former Dubs forward does see the 2019 Footballer of the Year fitting in with Farrell’s plans.
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“I think we might see two, maybe even three goalkeepers used by Dublin in the Leinster championship,” says Connolly.
“Stephen has been there for the bones of 30 years with this Dublin team. Do I see him starting every game now for Dublin? No. But do I see him giving huge impetus to the guys in there learning their trade? Yes.
“Would I have Stephen around the dressingroom for as long as he possibly wanted to be there? Yes. Because I know the guy himself, he’s never going to take anything away, he’ll be adding stuff all the time.
“And for the likes of Evan Comerford and the new goalkeepers in there, that’s a wealth of knowledge to be able to lean on.
“But I also think Stephen will have a say this summer. I think some of the teams, the likes of Galway with the big men around the middle of the field, we’re not going to be able to compete as well there, so we’re going to need a guy that can throw a dart out 40 yards and get us playing with an attack.”
Connolly believes by using their goalkeeper in a more orthodox fashion, it could actually suit Dublin’s style during the championship.
“Tactically, I think Dublin are not on par with the likes of Kerry at the moment, or they’re not on par with the likes of Donegal. And that’s where if they can be shut down off kick-outs, where they will struggle.
“I watched Stephen on Saturday night, and the big thing for me with Stephen is he doesn’t make two or three mistakes in a row. He might make a mistake, but he won’t do the same mistake again.
“With the new kick-out structure and the new rules, it’s much harder to get those 45-50 yard kicks off with precision. I think Stephen has been the best at that for nearly two decades.
“I was impressed with him against Galway, but he’s not going to be able to give you what other keepers will, coming out and playing around the middle, stretching teams in a different sort of way.
“Dublin don’t probably have the big fielders right out in the middle of the field, but they do have really good runners.
“So, I think maybe the influence of Stephen, I’m speculating here obviously, I don’t know what’s going to happen come summertime. I don’t know what the thought-process is in the camp at the moment, but Stephen’s value is untold, really.”
Connolly is to play a charity match in Healy Park, Omagh on Saturday to raise funds for Gaza – a game between the 2011 Dublin team and their Tyrone counterparts.
But on Sunday the current crops will meet in a high stakes league match at the same venue. For Dublin there is the chance to grab a league final spot, while for Tyrone the threat of relegation to Division Two looms large.
“I think Dublin, unlike Galway, probably need to get to a league final,” adds Connolly. “They probably need it for their confidence to get to Croke Park and play a big game there before the championship starts.
“I think that would give a lot of the younger nucleus of that squad a bit of confidence because you can sometimes paper over the cracks, like beating Galway last Saturday, I think it kind of flattered them a little bit.
“Galway’s performance, especially in front of the posts, wasn’t akin to what we’ve seen over the last 24 months. Their scoring efficiency was very poor, I think Pádraic Joyce said there were 19 shots on goal they didn’t convert.
“I’d say if there was another 15-20 minutes left in that game, Galway would have been the stronger team coming down the stretch.”
On the bigger picture, though, Connolly still sees the Dubs as live contenders for Sam Maguire.
“I’d probably have them [at number] three with Kerry. They’re kind of very similar and they’re going to have a very similar run-in towards the real meat of the championship.
“Like there’s nobody really to compete with Dublin in Leinster this year. And unless Cork come up with something really, really soon, I don’t think they’re going to compete with Kerry either.”
– Diarmuid Connolly is a Gaelic games ambassador for BoyleSports.
