Discipline and humility keep driving Dublin

It’s only when you observe inevitable wars of attrition, such as that we seem destined for in the first quarter-final at Croke Park this evening, that you fully appreciate what this Dublin team have brought to the game these past two seasons.

Although much has been said and written about their resources, their back-up and their depth of talent, their recent pre-eminence owes as much to their attitude as to anything else.

That attitude manifests itself in their reaction to being fouled coming out of defence with the ball. When the likes of Jack McCaffrey or James McCarthy get stopped in their tracks, we rarely see the type of petulance and irascibility displayed by previous defending champions. When Bernard Brogan, Eoghan O’Gara or Kevin McManamon aren’t granted a free kick because their natural strength masks the pounding they’re getting, they hardly ever resort to bitching and moaning to the referee. Instead they get on with the business of tackling to regain possession.