Joe Fortune: Ger set to stick with experience
DESPITE Ger Cunningham's recent calling up of a smattering of the Dublin U21 hurling team that narrowly lost to Kilkenny in the Leinster quarter-final in Parnell Park, their manager, Joe Fortune, isn't expecting his senior counterpart to delve too deeply into his new reservoir for Saturday's clash with Laois in Portlaoise (7.0).
"It's a hard one for Ger," Fortune told the Herald. "It's not the time of year to be doing much experimentation and I think from the Galway match, Ger probably won't change too much."
Describing Saturday's match as "massive for Dublin hurling," Fortune reasons: "You don't want to not be playing hurling in August."
"Those few days were a massive kick in the teeth for Dublin hurling. First, we lost to Kilkenny the way we did and then the Galway result.
"In the space of one week or two weeks, it put everyone in their place."
Notably, Cunningham has managed to persuade last year's minor football captain, Con O'Callaghan, to link up with his panel
massive
"In fairness to Ger, he has trawled the county (in search of new players). He found some of them. But it's probably down to the same group now on Saturday.
"I do think Cian (Boland) is going to have a massive part to play in the very near future. He could start provided they get over Saturday.
"And some of the players he brought in now have huge potential.
"I rate Seán Treacy very highly. I think he's as good as David, potentially. Fiontán McGibb, offers something different.
"But maybe some of those players need a couple of years. They need to earn their belts at under-21 level. Training is great. That experience is great but they need to get competitive hurling.
"But I don't think he'll stray very much from what he has at the minute," Fortune concluded.
Dublin hurling