JUST TAKE IT AWAY
Cullen: It’s time to remove privilege of home comforts for Dublin
PADDY CULLEN has backed Donegal’s motion to take the Dubs out of Croke Park in the ‘Super 8s’.
Following on from last year, when Dublin played two of their three games at GAA headquarters – their de facto home ground – Donegal have put forward a motion to Congress later this month proposing that no county be able to nominate Croke Park as a home venue at that stage of the Championship.
Cullen, Dublin’s legendary All-ireland winning goalkeeper in 1974, ‘76 and ‘77, says that having the majority of their games in Croke Park massive advantage.
Asked if Donegal were right to push the motion, Cullen replied: “Yes. I can see why. That’s the first thing that struck me when they brought in that rule – Dublin are going to get two games in Croke Park, that’s for sure.”
He continued: “I think Dublin are vulnerable away from home. Because it’s always in their psyche. When you go down, you’re out of your comfort zone.
“We used to be pushed. We had a good team when I was playing.
“We were kind of unbeatable in a way, I hate saying that, but to the Wexfords and teams like that, they should have been pushovers but we’d be down in Dr Cullen Park and you’d be just fighting to get out of it.”
Having to play two
‘Super 8s’ games away from Croke Park would leave Dublin vulnerable in their bid for the five-in-a-row, he believes.
“Definitely. Because you’re coming up against reasonably strong teams who feel that they’re in with a chance.
“There’s a definite advantage in Croker [for Dublin], no doubt about it. Everybody knows it. The dogs in the street know it.” However they try to deflect the hype around the five-ina-row, Cullen reckons it will play on the minds of the Dublin players.
“Oh I would say so. The four-in-a-row is fantastic but the fivein-a-row is the dream. “It’s very difficult to do. You saw Kerry trying to do it and the gods didn’t shine on them that day.
“But it’s possible we can do it, definitely. Dublin will still be very strong.”
Cullen, who managed the Dubs from 1990-92, added that Kerry’s thrilling one-point win over Jim Gavin’s (inset) men on Saturday night was significant, despite it being a League game in early February.
“I would see a relevance, yeah. Kerry have been down long enough.
“They’ve been nibbling away but they’ve got a young team now, and they did it before some years back, I remember it well, going back to my own time, when they can just spring a team.
“Let’s hope they sprung it too early! But I think they have the makings of a Championship team.”