THE MARK HAS MADE NO DIFFERENCE, RUES BRENNAN

CLARE’S Gary Brennan believes the introduction of the mark in Gaelic football is almost redundant because of the way in which the game has evolved. Having made his name as a high-fielding, rampaging presence around the middle, Brennan still harbours doubts regarding its merits. ‘The ball doesn’t get kicked out any more! I suppose I always said at the time when I saw that rule coming in, I felt it would reward whoever did make a catch but I couldn’t see it leading to more high fielding,’ he said. ‘I think that is the case. I haven’t seen any more high fielding because of it but the positive as I said, it does reward the player who goes up and makes that catch. ‘But the ball so rarely now seems to come out past the ‘45 in a lot of games. I wouldn’t say it has revolutionised the game, I would say I was competing for more ball in the air in my earlier years playing football than I am now. ‘I remember going down in 2008, I think it was down to Killarney, trying to compete in the air with Seamus Scanlon and Darragh Ó Sé. I was a good bit lighter than I am now. ‘Then you try to bulk up to compete with these guys and next thing the game changes and it’s all about running around the place!’ Brennan (below) has been a key part of Colm Collins’ quiet revolution, Clare maintaining their Division 2 status this spring. In fact, Kerry was the only Munster team to finish with a higher Allianz League standing. ‘You are talking about trying to break into that top tier but when you look at our Championship displays over the last few years, we have come close to Kerry, come close to Mayo, but we haven’t been able to beat them. For us it is about trying to find a way where we can keep strengthening our own panel, our own belief in what we are doing, and hopefully at some stage take that step.’ He is just delighted that Collins decided to stay on this year and added: ‘I think it was very, very important that we continued to build on what we had been doing in the last couple of years. ‘Colm, I don’t know whether he is planning on being an Arsène Wenger or a Brian Cody about it, but as long as he wants it at the moment he is more than welcome to have that job. ‘It is important that we are looking to put the structures in place.’