Gilroy defends dawn sessions

Dublin boss Pat Gilroy has rejected suggestions he is placing excessive demands on his players.

The Dublin panel trained collectively more than 40 times in January, but Gilroy insists players are more than willing to make the commitment.

“If we weren’t having organised sessions — and I can only speak for our own group — the lads would be doing something themselves,” said Gilroy yesterday. “One of the hardest things to enforce is them not doing something if they have some down-time. These fellas are mad keen to be out and doing training and building their fitness.

“They enjoy it, but if you look at it...the harsh facts are that only three players in total have children.

“The day of a guy playing into his 30s with a small, young family is getting fewer and fewer because there are other pressures.

“But when guys are single, if they’re training morning, noon and night, they’re delighted and happy going out to it.”

Many of Dublin’s training sessions have taken place at 6am but Gilroy doesn’t believe pre-dawn sessions are an extreme measure.

“There’s definitely too much made of it,” he says. “I don’t see articles being written about swimmers at 12 and 13 years of age who get up at half four every morning to train and then go to school. It sounds very exotic but it’s a very practical thing and when they’re out there they love it and then they’re awake for the day and they’re lively. I think the harshness of it, it isn’t that bad. It’s something they actually look forward to

“We only do it around exam time and they really like to be up, particularly the students, to get their study in for the day.

“If we were doing five evenings a week they’d lose the evening and would get no work done, whereas in the early mornings they’re in college by 8am and they’re able to study. So there’s a lifestyle thing that works for us. We’re finished with those sessions now. It’s a very short burst of them just to make up for the time of the down season, and we’ll possibly do them again when guys are doing exams around May, again, to free up their time. We try to be as respectful of their lives as we can.”

Dublin have made just one change to the team that lost to Kerry last weekend for tomorrow’s NFL Division One match against Mayo, as Darren Daly replaces the injured Mick Fitzsimons at right corner-back.