Dublin no-show at Leinster football championship launch amidst Ger Brennan ban case

ROOM FOR ONE MORE: Dublin declined to send a representative to Tuesday’s Leinster senior football championship launch in Naas. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile

Citing the ongoing Ger Brennan disciplinary case, Dublin declined to send a representative to Tuesday’s Leinster senior football championship launch in Naas.

For the second year in a row, Dublin were the only one of the 11 participating counties that didn’t have a player at the promotional event for the competition.

Twelve months ago, the launch in Cedral St Conleth’s Park in Newbridge clashed with Dublin’s training camp in Portugal and therefore no player was deemed available.

On this occasion in The Killashee Hotel in Naas, organisers were informed by Dublin that they would not be sending a member of their panel because of the outstanding issue relating to manager Brennan.

Dublin are challenging the St Vincent's man's proposed 12-week suspension arising from a half-time altercation with Galway’s strength and conditioning coach Cian Breathnach McGinn in Salthill last Sunday week.

The penalty threatens to sideline Brennan for the entire provincial competition as well as the opening round of the Sam Maguire Cup. A Central Hearings Committee is due to take place in the coming days.

Dublin open their Leinster SFC campaign in a quarter-final against Carlow or Wicklow on April 19 at a venue yet to be determined. For their quarter-final last year, they travelled to Aughrim to face The Garden County.

Meanwhile, as many 16 inter-county teams are expected to have had training camps in Portugal this season. Both Cork’s football and hurling teams have already prepared in The Algarve as have Clare’s hurlers and the Down and Mayo footballers.

Both Galway footballers and hurlers along with the hurlers of Antrim, Dublin, Kildare, Waterford and Wexford have or are enjoying warm weather training there.

Monaghan and Tyrone’s footballers are among the list too. Division 1 winners Donegal head to Portugal on Friday, while runners-up Kerry are travelling after the Easter weekend.

Carlow and Offaly’s hurlers have had camps in The Gold Coast Resort just outside Dungarvan. Armagh, it has been reported, had a camp organised for Carton House this past weekend but left when the facilities were set up for Manchester United.

Training camps are considered less cost prohibitive than ones at some resorts in Ireland. Quinta da Lago and Browns resorts in Vilamoura along with Colina Verde Sports in Moncarapacho are the most popular destinations for inter-county teams.

Pre-Covid and before the introduction of the split season, the GAA had signalled their intention to ban overseas trips with home-based camps limited to three days.