Ger Cunningham is set to continue as Dublin hurling manager for a third season but it remains to be seen if the Cork man can keep this young panel in touch with the perennial All-Ireland contenders.
"We were top six in the league," said Cunningham, speaking at the Bord Gáis under-21 All-Ireland semi-finals championship media day (Dublin face Galway at 6pm in Thurles this Saturday with Antrim versus Waterford at 4pm).
“We didn’t get into the top six this year [in championship] compared to last year but you see the games last Sunday and how close they were.
"There was nothing between those teams. They are the top four teams on paper. They are the top four teams in the bookies when the bets are down for an All-Ireland. They have been the top four all year. Then you have Clare, Limerick, ourselves, Cork, Wexford and that.
“On any given day we’d hope to be competitive. We were for 35 minutes against Kilkenny but on any given day to be competitive against all the rest of the teams.”
Any given day has not been evident from Dublin since 2013 when they beat Kilkenny and Galway to win their first provincial title in 52 years.
That team included Conal Keaney, Danny Sutcliffe and Stephen Hiney and Michael Carton. Carton, Keaney and Hiney have retired while Sutcliffe, who is still only 24, left the panel.
But nine of the Dublin U-21s playing at Semple Stadium this weekend were part of the senior set-up in 2016.
“Like anyone, we all start out at the start of the year with ambitions to try and win the MacCarthy Cup. But we have to be realistic as well from our point of view. You saw the standard last weekend, they are the top four and we have to make sure that gap doesn’t get any bigger,” saied Cunningham”
“We are heading into year three. It’s changing, there are younger players coming through all the time. That’s the same in any team, you are always trying to add.
“The younger guys have put their hands up to be selected and have come in and made the transition from Under-21 to senior. We are looking across the board, not just at Under-21s, we are looking at the club scene as well.”
