All Ireland SFC Qualifier/ Wicklow v Donegal: Gavin Cummiskey talks to one of Wicklow's several rising stars.

This piece is something of an introduction to a rising football star. But, of course, Paul Earls already introduced himself on May 15th. Wicklow came agonisingly close that Sunday to kick-starting their championship with a mammoth upset, before Kildare sneaked home in an early-season epic at Croke Park.

Earls trudged off the field, head bowed, 1-6 in his back pocket. Not a bad championship debut for the 20-year-old Geography and Economics student from Wicklow town.

This was his first championship match; a shoulder injury sustained in the county final last year kept him out of the Leinster club championship, the Sigerson Cup with UCD, and a large chunk of this year's league. It all worked perfectly in his favour.

"Because of the shoulder I was in the gym the whole time - that has definitely stood to me," he said this week. "I've put on nearly a stone this year.

"I'll probably try for a bit more next winter. I don't think I would have been able to handle this level without it. Donegal (Wicklow's opponents next Sunday) are going to be a physical side. You need to be able to win your own ball."

Now all he has to do is cement the reputation built up with St Patrick's, who last year ended the eight-year dominance of Rathnew in Wicklow, by shocking a weary Donegal.

Little hope exists here, despite Donegal missing Kevin Cassidy and having been through two bruising Ulster championship matches with Armagh. Yet, this match is deep in home territory, Aughrim, a village whose setting hints at why Wicklow is known as the Garden of Ireland.

Wicklow have been held back historically by the shackles of tribal rivalry, but the recent arrival of Hugh Kenny as manager promises a new, more cohesive ethic.

"He is very, very organised," said Earls of the boss. "Players don't really want for anything and it's just a very fresh approach to everything. He wouldn't have any favourites, even from his own club (Baltinglass), so there are no token players. He just picks the best team he can.

"There's no problem dropping lads either if they're not playing well so this ensures a great level of competition in training. I don't know, being so young, but I heard such competition for places wasn't there before."

It cannot simply be a coincidence that Rathnew fall off their perch and Wicklow suddenly start producing decent championship form.

"It was great for us," said Earls of the St Patrick's breakthrough. "Four of us came through from that team. Two of them are 21 (David Smullen and Garry Duffy), I'm 20 and Darragh O'Sullivan is 19. It gave us a platform to get into the senior squad. I don't know if the four of us would have come through if we hadn't won the senior championship so early."

The quality Rathnew corner forward Tommy Gill has long carried Wicklow hopes in the way Declan Browne has carried Tipperary's. When he opted out this year, it seemed the void might not be filled. But when a couple more followed suit, the door opened for Earls and company to shine, much like - dare we say it? - Fermanagh last year.

"Yeah, that's definitely happened," admitted Earls. "Tommy has been the top corner forward in the county for the last number of years. Now we have a number of lads who could play in the full-forward line this Sunday. No one is really guaranteed their place. Wayne (O'Gorman) is probably the most experienced and he's 24."

The potential is evident, but Wicklow have done nothing yet. Lose, as they are expected to do, on Sunday and it will look like zero progress, just as in the previous four years.

It's unfortunate Donegal came out of the hat. It makes Wicklow's letting Kildare off the hook all the more regrettable. The fact they managed to produce such a performance though gives the future a brighter tinge.

Kenny is not one to cry over spilt milk either, and he has sports psychologist and former Cavan footballer Declan Kyle working overtime in recent weeks.

"Against Kildare we all enjoyed the atmosphere actually, more than being intimidated by it," said Earls. "There was no great pressure either and the few early scores helped us to settle into the match.

"We worked hard on getting the belief into the team. The management played their part here. Its just a pity we let it slip in the last few minutes."

"It showed potential more than anything else. We have to show that we can fulfil that potential now over the next few years. We have a point to prove on Sunday.

"If we get over this the momentum will come. We haven't had a run in the county for the last few years. It would be a good start for a young team."