Dotsie bred to be as ‘natural’ as they come

All the nonsense about Dublin hurling and Dublin hurlers over the years, talk of them not being ‘natural’ hurlers, of being ‘made’ hurlers, of Dublin not being a traditional hurling county – there’s something people should know.

There are individuals and families and clubs in Dublin as rooted in Ireland’s ancient sport as anyone anywhere else in the country.

Take David ‘Dotsie’ O’Callaghan from the team that will meet Cork in the All-Ireland semi-final in Croke Park. Dotsie’s late father Paddy was from Ballyhea in Cork, a family and a club long associated with hurling (Dotsie’s cousin Pa O’Callaghan has been on the Cork minor team for the last three years).