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TEN THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT DUBLIN HURLING AT THE START OF THE 2012 SEASON

20 Feb 2012

SUICIDE OR SURVIVE
Dublin’s opening league game against Galway in the 2012 NHL this Sunday will also mark the second time this year the Dubs’ jersey has been used to highlight the Vodafone-backed charity Suicide Or Survive.
The footballers’ used the unique shirt for their opening league game against Kerry and now the hurlers will also take up the torch in highlighting this vitally important campaign. Vodafone, Dublin GAA and the SOS charity will use the opportunity of having the SOS logo on the sky blue shirt as a novel way of putting forward a crucial message about the need for greater suicide prevention by providing more support for those in need and encouraging people in depression to talk and seek help. There is a simple message around this initiative called Talk. Listen. Change. Watch this space for more SOS news later this week.

MORE LIKE A CHAMPIONSHIP THAN A LEAGUE 
This year’s league will be more like an All-Ireland Championship than an early spring stroll. The fact that the GAA have split Division One in half and the new look means there are only six teams in 1A and sees the Dubs facing massive tests against Galway, Kilkenny, Tipperary, Cork and Waterford. The good news is that every game will be of the highest possible calibre; the bad news is that any defeat will be difficult to recover from and also makes it tough for Anthony Daly to experiment when every game is as demanding as Championship.

DUB HURLERS AND THE OLYMPIC LINK
Tipp-born Dublin hurling star Ryan O’Dwyer is a great grandson of Paddy Ryan from Pallasgreen in Limerick who won gold for the hammer throw in the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp. Paddy was a multi All-Ireland winning champion when he emigrated to the States and became a US citizen which enabled him to represent them in the 1920 Olympics. But he later returned home to live and there is a statue in his honour standing in Pallasgreen today and Ryan O’Dwyer is proud of his Olympic roots.

RECORD BREAKERS
Dublin are the defending NHL champions after winning the crown last year for the first time since 1939.  That Dublin team was on a roll, having won the All-Ireland title the September before in 1938. But the 1938 crown was the Dubs’ last senior success. They haven’t been back in a final since 1961 when they lost to Tipp by a point with 14 men. Their appearance in the All-Ireland semi-final last August was their first since 1948. Hopefully more records tumble in 2012.

DALY
Described by Ryan O’Dwyer as ‘a warrior poet’, Dublin manager Anthony Daly knows all about trying to break down the door to hurling’s big time. He was a part of Clare teams who suffered Munster final defeat in 1993 and 1994 before they upset the odds to win a first Munster for 63 years in 1995, with Daly an inspirational wing back and captain. Considering how Tipp had hammered them by 18 points in the ’93 final it was quite a turnaround. And while the Dublin footballers won Sam that summer, Clare went on to win the Liam MacCarthy Cup that same season – a first in 81 years. They won Munster and the All-Ireland again in 1997 and retained Munster in 1998. Daly’s experience in knowing what it takes for a team rise up from the doldrums is simply invaluable.

ALL STAR GAZING
Since the inaugural awards in 1971, five Dublin hurlers have won hurling all-stars. Mick Bermingham won in 1971 and Brian McMahon followed almost 20 years later. Then there was Alan McCrabbe in 2009 before Liam Rushe and Gary Maguire won in 2011. Liam Rushe was also awarded the title of young hurler of the year. There were 10 Dubs nominated after their high flying season. At 21, there are great hopes that Rushe will continue where he left off last season. But keep a look out for men who came close and possibly should have got a gong last season. Top of this list is lightning-quick defender Peter Kelly, while Ryan O’Dwyer is always worth watching.

KNEES UP
By any reckoning Dublin’s work at gate crashing the hurling party last year was impressive – but all the more so considering the crippling list of injuries they suffered which failed  to deflect them from their path. Stephen Hiney, Tomas Brady and Conal Keaney all suffered dreaded cruciate knee ligament injuries last year and all hurling fans are desperate to see them make a full recovery in 2012 and find out just how far the Dubs can go if they ever get a full deck to choose from. Blues boss Daly has his fingers crossed that inspirational forward Keaney and star defender Brady will be ready for championship in June. The progress of stalwart defender Hiney is said to be slower and it’s hoped to have him back later in the summer.

FRIENDS OF DUBLIN HURLING
Everyone needs Friends. The Dub hurlers have a passionate band of followers called the Friends Of Dublin Hurling who make sure that wherever the sky blue hurlers go there is a travelling army of support with them. They also make sure there are buses full of fans at whatever away game is on. Older Dubs will remember the great days of the Fr Joe Kennedy buses from Mount Argus and the craic on the bus trips away is a rite of passage for young Dubs.

THE COMEBACK KID
Part of Pat Gilroy’s All-Ireland winning football squad last year, Ross O’Carroll is creating a real buzz of excitement around the Dublin hurling after news that he is back the hurlers. The Kilmacud Crokes man has had a torrid time with injuries and is currently out with a broken finger, but he represents a huge boost to Daly because he is a genuine class forward. He last starred for the Dubs when he scored 0-4 against Wexford in Nowlan Park in a drawn Leinster semi-final in 2008. An older brother of senior football hero Rory and U21 hurler Bill, you can never have enough forward talent and Ross is a class act if he can just get a break from injury to prove it.

ONE TO WATCH
After reaching the Under 21 and minor All-Ireland finals in 2011, there is no shortage of exciting new talent in Dublin hurling.
But one young man capable of making a quick transition to senior and who has already impressed Daly is Danny Sutcliffe.
The 20 year-old midfielder from St Jude’s is also a decent footballer, but he looks like having a long and successful career as a Dublin senior hurler ahead of him and has great pace, vision, skill and a sweet strike to make him a player to keep a close eye on in 2012.