Dublin welcome test against the best

They’ve come a fair way since the start. Back when the NHL began Dublin turned in a disappointing opening performance against Tipperary in Thurles and looked favourites for relegation.

Last weekend was their latest rung on the ladder —- going upwards. After good wins over Galway and Cork, they confounded the form team in the league, Waterford, with a five-point victory that was an accurate reflection of their superiority on the day.

“We had put two good performances back to back,” said manager Ger Cunningham yesterday, “which was good, obviously, but our away game against Tipperary in the opening game had been poor, so we were conscious of trying to put a good performance together away from home.