Dubs aim to spoil Micko's farewell

THE old parliament hadn't seen so much activity since Theobald Wolfe Tone and Edmund Burke were pondering the French Revolution.

In the building that Henry Grattan gave his name to, four GAA managers convened yesterday to discuss their upcoming Bank Of Ireland Leinster and Munster football final battles.

Given the historical setting of the Georgian edifice, it was fitting Mick O’Dwyer would be centre stage. Over the past 50 years, Micko has carved a niche, all his own, in GAA history. He promises this to be his last year, that’s been said before, but you never know with Micko.

In a room haunted by ghosts of epochs past (a Battle of the Boyne tapestry hangs on one side of the room), O’Dwyer mused as to why he is still here. Twenty eight years ago, he walked out of football and into a new life, buying lobster pots to go with his new boat in Waterville, hoping to follow a lifelong ambition trawling Kerry’s North Atlantic coast.

“Still here,” Micko says, “and the boat has rotted. It’s not hard to say what has kept me going, I have enjoyed every moment of it. From my time with Kerry right through to Kildare. That’s why every one of us do it.”

Sunday sees Micko trying to mastermind Kildare’s third Leinster success in five years. In his way, a refreshed, re-energised Dublin side. Looks like Tommy Lyons’ breath of fresh air has worked wonders round the capital. They laid a ghost to bed in Meath the last day, now a more recent demon needs to be banished. Dublin haven’t beaten Kildare in the championship since 1994.

“There is a different feel to this one,” Lyons believes. “There is a different tribal warfare between Dublin and Meath than between Dublin and Kildare. Of course, people will mention the 2000 final and there are eight or nine of the lads involved then, and they still talk about it. But, 2000 was just one of those freakish days.

“The most pleasing aspect of the Meath game, for me, was that we kept our shape. Even in the second half, when Meath were dominating, our corner forwards and our wing forwards hadn’t drifted in, we hadn’t bunched around the middle. We never lost our shape which pleased me greatly.”

Of more concern to Lyons would be the way Meath dominated the match for 20 minutes after the interval. Although, Ray Cosgrove’s goal was the vital nail in the Royal coffin, a lack of consistency still lingers over Dublin. Even Micko recognises it, remarking yesterday that he “hoped Dublin play like they did for 20 minutes in the second half against Meath rather than how they played in the first half.” Still, Lyons is happy simply to be in this position. Only nine months ago, he would have never dreamt of preparing the Dubs for a Leinster final, happy as he was in his life as analyst for RTE.

“Last October, I didn’t think I would be the Dublin manager, so thoughts of a Leinster final never really entered my head. But, now that I am here, I am looking forward to it. It will be a marvellous occasion, particularly in the new Croke Park,” Lyons said. “I did have a lot of reservations taking the job. I was enjoying the media gig, you could say what you like and it didn’t matter if you were wrong or right. But, nothing replaces the buzz of preparing 30 lads for the championship, which I found out as soon as I came back.” Lyons and his Dublin ship haven’t sailed smoothly into this Leinster final. Johnny Magee will watch proceedings from the bench, leaving a hole in the half-back line.

“Johnny is a big loss, and it is a huge disappointment for him, particularly after me making him lose 2½ stone over the Spring. He worked hard to get his fitness right, but he is not available and we have to plan without him. But, there is no point in having a panel of 30 players if someone can’t come in for an injured player and we are fortunate Paul Curran has just returned from injury.”

Of course, Micko has been here more recently than Lyons. Last time they met in a Leinster final, the younger of the two plotted the downfall of Kildare (in '97, with Offaly). However, they are back, eyeing a third Leinster title, and maybe more, for his retirement party.

“We brought four young players in and they all seem to have settled fairly well. This is definitely my final year, I made the decision last year and I think I am leaving behind a squad of good, young players in Kildare for someone else to build upon.”

Does he think Sam could be snatched in his final year?

“I don’t know. I thought '98 was the year we should have won it . There is no such thing as a missing link in football, it all comes down to how the breaks go on the day. But, with this new championship, which I think is fantastic, we will have the eight best teams in Ireland in the quarters. It’s quite a contrast to my time with Kerry, in '75, we won the All Ireland after playing only three games.”

Micko also thinks talk of attendance decline is nonsense. “There are more people at the games than ever before. I remember we played Monaghan in an All Ireland semi-final one year, and there was only 17,000 people at it. I don’t know what all this talk is about.”

So, the press conference drew to an end with the lilting, Waterville accent holding court. It is not quite what Grattan envisaged for his parliament, but it will have pleased many who sat within those hallowed halls and discussed affairs of the state. After all, as Micko would doubtless agree, what better representation of Irishness is there than the championship?