Dublin will miss calm and calculated Costello

His departure announced in April, us GAA correspondents and writers have had six months to digest the fact there will be no more thought-provoking offerings from Costello.

John Costello celebrates with his son Cormac Costello after Dublin’s most recent All-Ireland triumph. Picture: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

GAA state of the nation addresses come in three forms. The director general’s pre-Congress report, the president’s speech on the second day of that annual gathering, and John Costello’s annual report to Dublin convention.

Released on the first or second Monday of December, the outgoing Dublin chief executive’s observations and musings on the season past made for essential reading and a page lead in the following day’s newspaper.