Hughes happy to do the hard graft for Down

DOWN forward Danny Hughes is refusing to contemplate the possibility that next Sunday’s All-Ireland semi-final is a ‘now or never’ moment for the older members on the county panel.

While not an old team by any stretch of the imagination, Hughes is just one of half a dozen of those men in and around the first 15 who have at least half a dozen seasons under their belt.

Some — like Benny Coulter — are closer to twice that time in the ranks and Down’s record in recent years would suggest that this is, indeed, a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many of them.