Veteran Byrne prepared to do any task set for Dublin

Davy Byrne during the Dublin GAA media event ahead of the All-Ireland SFC semi-final. Pic: Shauna Clinton/Sportsfile

Six days out from his seventh All-Ireland semi-final and David Byrne is in jovial form.

He’s asked about tattoos on his right leg and there being none on his predominant left leg. 

“They’re both kicking legs,” he smiles. Mention of the large banner carrying his image outside his club St Olaf’s in Sandyford draws a sarcastic response. “Yes, it’s a small picture!”

The difference between Dublin’s league, in which they were relegated from Division 1, and championship campaigns? 

“We didn’t get three red cards, which is good.”

He’s asked if his two points in the Leinster final defeat to Westmeath were his first for the county. “No, I scored points before. It was the first time I’d scored two in a game though, but we lost, so I won’t do that again!”

At 32, there’s not much Byrne hasn’t experienced in elite Gaelic football. He is obviously relaxed now two seasons on from taking a year out in Melbourne. He’s started every league and championship game this season.

If Seán MacMahon isn’t fit, Byrne may be assigned to shadow Kerry's David Clifford as Mick Fitzsimons did in the final three years ago. It’s a task Byrne has taken up before in league games. Should he be asked again, he will be diligent in his preparations.

“David Clifford is obviously a fantastic forward and he’s absolutely flying it. He’ll present a challenge for whoever is marking him. You would try to study your opposition as much as possible. In the modern game, with the availability of all your video and stuff, I think it’s a no-brainer for defenders to be doing.”

In a game now which lends to more one-on-one defending, the pride Fitzsimons put into his trade left an impression on Byrne. 

“I would have learned a lot from Mick Fitz, Rory O’Carroll as well. There were a lot of great defenders we had in the Dublin team growing up, or when I was coming into the panel, should I say.

“I think he (Fitzsimons) would have really been obsessive about one-v-one defending and try to rep out as many in training as he can so when it comes to matches, you’re ready for it.” 

As he showed fielding a couple of Evan Comerford’s kick-outs against Galway on the Cusack Stand tramline, Byrne’s brief has developed in other ways.

“The delivery was spot-on. You see if you are even a couple of yards off, the ball can either go over the sideline or be picked off. It was Rob Finnerty who was in front of me. I thought, ‘If Evan sees me here, then he can pick me out.’ I thought he executed it quite well.

“Kick-outs go poorly and very easily the media and everyone else will look at the keeper, but it is probably 50% keeper, 50% the outfield player, so everyone has a role there.”

The back-to-back defeats to Westmeath and Louth were something Byrne hadn’t experienced as a senior Dublin footballer. 

It prompted several observers to dismiss their All-Ireland credentials but Byrne wasn’t looking for outside motivation.

“Honestly, I would try to avoid it as much as possible. I try to keep the focus as insular and in the group as possible. I think you’re putting a crazy amount of hours and commitment into a year, regardless of what people are saying on the outside. That’s motivation enough, the amount of effort you put in.”

When Ger Brennan called out some of the older players to up their game during the league, Byrne wasn’t thinking “me”.

That’s not to say he didn’t hear it.

“I think after every game you have to look at yourself first. Even if you play well, there’s always going to be areas you can improve on. So regardless of the challenge from a manager, if you have a defeat, you’ve got to be looking at yourself and see what could I have been doing better.

“So, you start looking and then you just start figuring out. You don’t need to be pointing the finger at, like, ‘this other person’, that’s not going to help at all.” 

Byrne has been part of Dublin panels with all of the management team aside from Niall Moyna. 

Demarcation lines were drawn early.

“I think the lads at the start of the year would have made clear boundaries that there’s a different relationship and a different dynamic there, which would have been made clear at the start of the year. Just through small things, but it’s good.”