Can the Dubs take the heat? Can the big personalities upset the Kilkenny/Tipp duopoly? Will the GAA cop on and use technology? These are all questions that need answering in the coming year.
5. Can Jim McGuinness move Donegal to the next level?
Spare me the chatter about Donegal’s uber-defensive system being tactically revolutionary and fascinating to watch; it was damn well effective but it was about as easy on the eye as a Katherine Lynch Christmas special.
Jim McGuinness refused to make any apologies and he was dead right not to, Donegal had been losing stylishly for many a year before he shook things up. But the most damning aspect of Donegal’s tactics last season was that, against 14 men in the All-Ireland semi-final, they couldn’t see out the deal. Their strategy had been so rigidly implemented up to that point that they seemed to have an inability to adapt. It cost them dearly.
McGuinness has promised that his team will evolve and it will be interesting to see exactly how. If he can introduce a greater attacking threat to go along with the defensive solidity then Donegal could be contenders. Not that we’re expecting Jim to go revealing how he plans to go about it, eh Kevin?
4. Can the big names reawaken the slumbering hurling giants?
On the hurling front, it’s been an extremely exciting off-season in terms of the managerial market. Davy Fitz with Clare, Liam Dunne with Wexford, Jimmy Barry-Murphy with Cork and John Allen with Limerick, there are going to be some really big guns patrolling the touchlines next summer and hopefully they can find some way of challenging the Kilkenny/Tipp duopoly, fascinating and all as that has been.
Elsewhere, renowned Illeist (that’s someone who refers to themselves in the third person) John McIntrye recently told us that John McIntrye will not be doing the Galway job anymore, so his place will be taken by Anthony Cunningham. Cunningham has already made his presence felt with a massive culling of the squad and folks out west will be praying he can put an end to a few years of serious underachievement.
3. Can Henry Shefflin defy medical logic once again
Obituaries to possibly the greatest hurler of all time have already been penned by some who seem to be forgetting who they’re dealing with. Anyone that thinks Henry Shefflin will be content to rest on the laurels of a glittering career and a record All-Star haul are mistaken; if he was that way inclined he could have given up the ghost a couple of years back.
Can Henry ‘Lazarus’ Shefflin recover his full powers yet again?
Due to his current shoulder problem, it’s looking like May before he’ll be back in action and at 33, especially with his injury history, you’d think he hasn’t long left. But we wouldn’t be surprised if come next September, Shefflin will be reflecting on another All-Ireland medal, another All-Star gong and another season in which he started every championship game under Brian Cody. If anyone can, Henry can.
2. OK, Computer?
Last season was the one of the worst in memory for dodgy decisions directly influencing the outcome of games. Tomas O’Connor’s square ball call springs to mind, while my Wexford colleague Sean Nolan continuously harps on about the controversial decision that saw his county men exit to Limerick in the qualifiers.
There’s still little sign of any video technology, however. The majority of players want it, the majority of managers seem to want it and you can guarantee that after a few games next season, there are going to be a few angry sets of supporters demanding that it comes in. What are you waiting for, Croke Park?
1. Can the Dubs take the heat?
Because it’s going to be an incredibly hot kitchen next summer. All-Ireland champions are always there to be shot down, but when it’s the Dubs that are the kingpins, all the nearest challengers will have loaded both barrels.
Winning an All-Ireland title is tough, defending it is even tougher. Just like winning it last year was an alien experience to the entire Dublin side, defending it is something that not one of them is used to. Only Kerry have retained it since 1990 and if Dublin can manage a similar feat, they deserve all the ridiculous hype that will go with it if they do taste success yet again.
