McGuinness picking up pointers from Dublin

More and more teams may be aping Donegal’s blueprint for success after their All-Ireland success last September, but Jim McGuinness is looking to Jim Gavin’s flamboyant Dublin side as they seek to defend their title.

The Ulster county’s fortunes improved dramatically under their ex-player, adding a more potent attacking thrust last year to a near-impenetrable defence introduced in 2011 but the search for perfection continues unabated.

McGuinness said after the defeat of Mayo nine months ago that his squad had another 20% within themselves and clearly believes most of that can be found in the attacking sphere, given his claim they spend 66% of their training on that side of the game.