Dubs developing defensive instinct

Sylvester Hennessy crunches the numbers from the weekend’s big Allianz League games.

The Dublin- Donegal clash in Croke Park on Saturday evening provided huge entertainment on a day when there were plenty of counter attractions on TV. This was a fascinating clash of two styles and the wounds of last year’s defeat to Donegal were very much evident, with Dublin choosing to front up physically to their northern nemesis. Jim Gavin, visibly more animated on the line, has certainly learned from Dublin’s All-Ireland semi-final defeat.

He, like Eamonn Fitzmaurice in the All-Ireland final, decided that the only way to beat Donegal was at their own game.