The GAA world yesterday began to pay its respects to Dublin football great Anton O’Toole, 68, following his death after a 15-month battle with cancer.

Nine months on and the thrill of the win has yet to wear off.

For any premier level county, let alone the Premier county, 11 months seems an inordinate length of time to go between Championship games.

At first glance the subtitle might seem a tad overblown: Dublin – The Chaos Years: How the Dubs Made A Mess of Things For So Long – and How They Turned It Around.

Our writers analyse the weekend’s GAA talking points...

While witnessing new rugby heroes lift and warm the hearts of the nation this chilly spring, we couldn’t but think of past ones and how this was their achievement too, writes  Kieran Shannon.

Dublin ladies senior football team manager Mick Bohan has backed Clontarf clubmate Jack McCaffrey to make a full and successful recovery from cruciate knee ligament damage.

Chaotic. Madness. Toughest game ever.

Enough is enough.

As David Burke was finishing his speech last Sunday, I was making my way along the Hogan Stand touchline for a piece with RTÉ when I felt this urge to go over to the devastated Waterford players and management still out on the field, says Tony Browne.

My speech went ok but the spontaneity of it probably framed it to be more natural and rare than I ever expected it could be, writes Anthony Daly.

Denis Walsh’s life, so many ways, has been a weave of Cork and Waterford.

John Coffey is hurling’s oldest living holder of an All-Ireland medal, having turned 99 in January. He played corner forward for Tipperary in the 1945 final win over Kilkenny, scoring the opening goal, writes PM O’Sullivan.

Colin Ryan shocked Clare hurling fans when he opted out of the senior panel for this season. He’ll watch his former colleagues play Limerick tomorrow. But he won his All-Ireland last week. Playing soccer.

Owen Mulligan’s admission he didn’t deserve his third All-Ireland medal in 2008 isn’t the only example of a player reluctant to lay claim to an All-Ireland title.

I was 23 when first nominated for an All-Star, the Sparrow, Ger O’Loughlin, and myself heading to the Burlington together for one of the biggest nights in the GAA calendar.

Galway forward Cyril Donnellan admits that halting Tipperary’s high-scoring attack will be a difficult task for Micheál Donoghue’s side this weekend.

What has happened to Cork? When the last time you could actually trust the county’s footballers to deliver on the big day? Paddy Kelly knows the issues. “We haven’t had a big scalp in the championship the last few years. Even saying that, we sound like of the smaller counties, but this is a huge opportunity to put that right.”

John Fogarty talks to Declan O’Mahoney ahead of Ballyboden St Enda’s All-Ireland Club SFC semi-final with Clonmel Commercials.

Michael Darragh Macauley is in new territory.

Five years have passed since James Masters made the call to Conor Counihan to say he couldn’t tolerate warming the bench anymore and bade him adieu.

The dust had barely settled from the 2005 All-Ireland camogie final when the Cork ladies football team wandered onto the Croke Park turf for a brief kick-around.

It’s 2002, late summer. Alan Brogan has been everywhere all championship. His emergence onto a Dublin team swaggering through Leinster under Tommy Lyons has captivated a public drawn in further by his famous dad Bernard and the bridge it builds to the glorious ’70s.

Christy Walsh has always known the spice of contrast, different strokes for different places.

There’s not a grey hair to be seen on Derek Lyng’s head. Five years have passed since the 37-year-old retired from Kilkenny but looking as trim as he was as a player and wearing a county tracksuit it’s hardly surprising people walking past in Langton’s Hotel are trying to place him in the squad.

Theirs is a private joy - Keith Duggan

"It will happen again for Galway — it’s just a matter of time."

Brendan Maher has always fronted up for Tipperary. Now they need him up front.

The possibility of playing in the last St Patrick’s Day All-Ireland senior club football final will have no bearing on Corofin next Tuesday, insists manager Stephen Rochford.

It mightn’t have worked out the way he intended but Lee Keegan at least cleared his name.

Colm Cooper says he does not want an All-Ireland medal — despite being part of the matchday panel for last month’s final win over Donegal.

Jackie Tyrrell has already confirmed he hopes to fill a Kilkenny jersey for at least one more season.

Nollaig Cleary leans against the dressing room wall in Caherlag, joking that a full year has passed since a dictaphone was last thrust in her direction.

"First and foremost, a very proudfather and second, a very proud club chairman," beams Donal Murphy.

Anyone happening upon the Poitín Still in Rathcoole last Monday night might have gone cool on the prospects of Kerry lifting a 37th All-Ireland football title less than a week later.

History awaits the Clare team facing Wexford in this evening’s U-21 All-Ireland final in Thurles as the Banner county look to join a select band of counties to have landed three successive titles.

Ballyhale Shamrocks chairman Michael Fennelly believes helping club-mate Henry Shefflin claim a record 10th All-Ireland title will be a strong incentive for Kilkenny on Sunday.

Perhaps the most depressing aspect about the ban is that it’s not really a media ban anymore. It’s more of a superstition.

Long before Noel McGrath made his senior inter-county debut with Tipperary in 2009, anyone with even the faintest knowledge of hurling knew this kid was going to be a star.

All-Ireland winner Kieran McGeeney met his Kerry match yesterday in stunning bride Maura O’Rahilly.

All-Ireland winning Cork footballer Paudie Kissane has announced his retirement from the inter-county game.