eir ambassador and Dublin hurling captain, Eoghan O’Donnell, pictured at last month’s unveiling of eir as a new sponsor of the GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship in Croke Park. The five-year deal which was announced on November 30th further cements the long-standing relationship between eir and the GAA.
By Cian O’Connell
Eoghan O’Donnell wants the Dublin hurlers to become more consistent in 2023. Enthusiastic about the appointment of Micheál Donoghue as manager, O’Donnell acknowledges that significant potential exists in the capital.
In recent years defiant Dublin performances have been summoned at various stages, but O’Donnell is adamant that progress can be made.
“I think that is the story of my career so far with Dublin is we have massive potential, but we haven't really realised it yet,” O’Donnell says.
“We are working, we are putting in a huge amount of work in Dublin. I think we are constantly improving, I think that goes across the board, that every county is working hard and improving.
“It is just a matter of trying to get all of the advantages and small yards that we can to get a consistent approach to games.
“On our day we can compete with and beat any team in the country, but it is just that hurling is so competitive you have to do that time and time again in the championship.
“For us it is just about establishing that consistency and performance level that every day we go out we play to our full potential.
“Unfortunately as the results have shown we haven't quite managed to do that yet so Micheál's number one goal will be to get to that potential every day.”
Busy preparing for the Walsh Cup and the Allianz Hurling League, O’Donnell and his Dublin colleagues are relishing Donoghue’s training approach so far.
New Dublin senior hurling team manager Micheál Donoghue.
“It is going very well, the lads have come in with a bit of freshness that the players are lapping up,” O’Donnell says.
“Micheál has been there and done it before, he has won an All-Ireland with Galway and obviously with the club. I think that lads respect that this is someone who has a template that works. He is trying to implement that in Dublin now.
“So lads have been very receptive and things have been going very well. He has a top class coaching set-up with him, that has been the main focus at the moment - the pitch sessions, getting the standard up and quality up, so it is going very well.”
To develop hurling further in Dublin, O’Donnell highlights the value of a successful senior inter-county outfit in assisting that process.
“It is huge,” O’Donnell replies. “You have to look no further than the Dublin footballers here, they have that mentality and they have that belief in themselves because they have been there and done it before.
“The Limerick hurlers are no different. The same culture is in Kilkenny, they are just born winners, they know when games come to crunch time that they are going to get over the line.
“I think that is where we need to get to, that when we are in a tight game and your back is to the wall, that you can come out on the right side of these games.
“The more you do that, the more belief is in the team. It is just instilled that you are going to come out the right side of the result.
“The more we can improve - the Walsh Cup we will be targeting to win every game, then going into the League we will be targeting to win every game, just to get that sense of belief and culture within the team.”
