Oisin McConville on Conor McManus: The best forward in football

When I sat down to watch a game televised by Sky Sports last year, Peter Canavan was asked a fairly simple question by presenter Brian Carney: “Would you like to play gaelic football in the modern era”?

Canavan paused and said he didn’t think he would enjoy nor prosper in the modern game.

I’m fairly sure humility stopped him from answering in any other way, but if there was any truth in Canavan’s answer, then that tells you how difficult it is to be an effective forward in today’s game. Canavan was one of the great forwards of his or any generation. What chance does that give the rest of us?