Gavin: Cluxton will make own call on Leinster final

JIM GAVIN will give Stephen Cluxton “every chance” of proving his fitness for Sunday’s Leinster SFC final against Laois but insists that the Dublin captain will make the final call on his participation.

Cluxton has suspected rib damage after a nasty tackle from Longford’s James McGivney – which resulted in a red card – during their comfortable semi-final victory but the Dublin boss revealed that he has already returned to training.

However, should the five-time All-Star miss out, it will be the first time in 14 years that he hasn’t manned the No 1 shirt for Dublin in a championship tie.

“He’s been out with us training. Stephen is a tough guy, mentally very strong and determined. He’s just sore from the bang. I’ll leave all those assessments to the medical team and the player,” the Dublin boss said yesterday.

“Ultimately, it’s a player’s call, to say whether he’s available for selection. So I’ll talk to them over the coming hours and days.”

Gavin has no worries if Evan Comerford – an All-Ireland U-21 winner last year who replaced Cluxton against Longford – is called into action once again.

“When any player isn’t available to us, the next player needs to step up and the big thing we looked for with Evan is his character. He’s very strong mentally and he knows exactly what he wants his players to do for him. He has a bright future ahead of him,” Gavin said.