Cian O’Sullivan savours winning moment

Cian O’Sullivan does not mince his words when it comes to his fortune-telling skills. The Dublin centre-back may be a key element of their success in claiming back-to-back All-Ireland SFC titles but he cannot predict the future.

Following last weekend’s replay final win over Mayo, Kilmacud Crokes clubman O’Sullivan now has four Celtic Crosses to go with his All-Ireland club medal.

Yet Dublin’s puppeteer, who pulls so many strings in conducting plays for Jim Gavin’s side, claims there is “not a hope in hell” he would have predicted such success following his debut season.

After featuring as a sub in the infamous 17-point hammering to Kerry in 2009, the 28-year-old is now relishing Dublin’s bright blue moments.

“I’m really relishing and cherishing these days,” says O’Sullivan, speaking in his role as ambassador for Sure, the official statistics partner of the GAA.

“I started out in 2009 and we got hammered by Kerry in a quarter-final and then two years late we were lifting Sam.

“Things can change in a very short space of time and that’s something I am very aware and conscious of that. Four All-Irelands with Dublin now, and if you were to ask me now, starting out my career in 2009 is that something I would have envisaged — not a hope in hell.”

Therefore, the 28-year-old is carefully managing the hamstring problems that have niggled him for years in order to extend his inter-county career.

His experience has been in stark contrast to that of Brian Fenton, the Dubs midfielder who is favourite to be named footballer of the year.

Fenton has never tasted a Championship defeat as a Dublin player, while the only competitive losses the 23-year-old was involved in were the National League defeats to Kerry and Cork in 2015 — and even at that, he only came off the bench.

The Raheny clubman has been an ever present during Dublin’s undefeated run of 29 competitive games with a glittering CV, but when Fenton first walked into the Dublin dressing-room, O’Sullivan admits he did not see greatness before him.

“First impressions were like ‘no, this isn’t the superstar’ but he’s just a really attentive and diligent guy,” says O’Sullivan.

“Any feedback he received from management about what he needed to work on, he worked on that and he was extremely committed to getting into that team and he just improved training session on training session, and once he got his chance to start he’s just taken off from there.

“It’s great to see that if you do want this and you’re willing to work hard enough and dedicate yourself to it that it can pay off.”

While Dublin bask in the glory of their back-to-back success, Mayo are left to lick their wounds.

O’Sullivan claims Mayo’s contentious call to make a late goalkeeping change for the All-Ireland final replay did not alter Dublin’s gameplan.

Stephen Rochford’s decision to start Rob Hennelly ahead of David Clarke in the decider has caused much debate.

O’Sullivan says they did not know about the switch until a few minutes before throw-in. “We didn’t know that at all. It didn’t really change our approach. We found out five minutes before throw-in so you can’t really go around trying to change things at that point in the day, no.”

And O’Sullivan insisted the keeper should not shoulder the blame for Mayo’s loss. “You definitely have to feel for him, but I don’t think anyone would point a finger,” says O’Sullivan.

“I think everyone would recognise it’s not any one man’s fault. It’s not anyone’s obligation to win the game and at the same time it’s not any one man’s fault if you don’t win the game.”