Champions can fill the Conn void
BARNEY ROCK expects new men to step up as Dublin try to move on without Diarmuid Connolly.
Blues legend Rock admits any side would miss a player of that stature.
Connolly has been absent since last coming on as a substitute in the league win over Mayo in February.
But Rock says that Jim Gavin and his players, who dispatched Wicklow in their Championship opener last weekend and are on course to claim an eighth Leinster title in a row, have no option now but to move on without the St Vincent’s playmaker.
He added: “Only the inside people know what’s going on. From Diarmuid’s point of view, he’s an exceptional footballer.
“The three or four things he did in the All-ireland final here last year, not too many players will ever do.
“Everybody moves on, you have to grow with it and you have to accept it.
“People will be saying, ‘Diarmuid should be back,’ but the lads are going out at the minute and they’re performing well.
“The big test will be the Super 8s, when it comes to that stage. Because Diarmuid had been very good – as had Paul Flynn.
“So it’s a time maybe for new people to come through.
“There are loads of fellas to do it. I know their skill levels are way up but Diarmuid was good at it and he produced some special moments.”