Dubs manager Jim expects ‘fantastic games’ in Super 8s
SUSPICION attaches itself to too many of Jim Gavin’s pronouncements. There are colleagues who find his very mannered way of talking irritating; there are others who suspect he is happy to dole out harmless platitudes from one end of the year to the other.
These characterisations are mostly unfair. Gavin wouldn’t be the first inter-county manager to strip his words of meaning or controversy before sending them out into the world.
And there are characters patrolling the sidelines who don’t even bother to hide their agendas, and can count on them being faithfully relayed of a Monday morning.
Gavin talks a lot about the honour of Dublin football, and that can be wearisome, particularly when his team, while unquestionably great and capable of truly beautiful football, are also well able to slip into darker conduct in order to win.
But he is also someone who thinks about the game outside of how it immediately affects him and his side, and that is truly a rarity in these days.
For most of this year, he has refused to engage much with the topic of the Super 8s. But now Dublin are there. They are the next challenge awaiting his team.
They are also part of the most radical refit of the football Championship since the introduction of the qualifiers at the start of this century.
‘To be very honest, we haven’t put much thought into it. Obviously we now have a bit of time to do so,’ he said, starting cagily.
‘I’m sure there’ll be fantastic games, that’s for sure.
‘Over the broad concept of it, there are eight teams that will qualify for it. On the island there are 24 other teams looking in going, “Jeez, that’s a nice party, it would be nice to be a part of it”.
‘We’re just delighted to qualify, that’s all we can do.
‘There will be some fantastic teams there and you’ll have eight really good, strong teams and there will be some great games, I’m sure.’
That comment about the many looking in at the few was interesting, given the concerns that have been expressed about the new format instituting a type of elitism that is causing more general concern in parts of the association.
Gavin wasn’t about to start evangelising for socialism in football on Leinster final day, but he said enough to suggest a level of unease with where this move could take the game.
‘I don’t know what the leadership of the GAA... I don’t know what their vision is for the end of this,’ he said.
‘We’re just going to focus in on the three games we will have and try and do our very best in each of those.’
The one blot on yesterday’s triumph was the dismissal of John Small in the second half. The defender didn’t seem to have much of a defence; his slap into the face of Evan O’Carroll looked inadvertent as he tried to tackle, but it was careless and happened in front of the officials.
‘I’m just off the pitch, but my initial reaction was, it was just a clumsy challenge. I don’t think there was anything malicious in what John did. I’m surprised that he went.’ Laois will be in the draw next week for the fourth round of qualifiers, and they should be buoyed by some of their efforts here.
Manager John Sugrue seemed deeply disappointed by the outcome, his attitude perhaps shaped by how well Laois played in the opening 20 minutes.
‘Two very different halves, yeah, we competed to some degree in the first-half for sure,’ he said.
‘They had their chances, we had our chances, probably both teams didn’t convert to a great degree. But yeah, competitive first half, (in the) second half they were athletically superior to a great degree.’
The qualifiers offer a chance at redemption, someone suggested. ‘Yeah, redemption is hard got,’ he replied.
No matter who they face in the fourth round in July, though, they won’t be of the calibre of Dublin. There is some small mercy there.