The obsession has switched. Last year, it was Dublin's defence that came under the microscope and from the 'burbs and city clubs, a million hypotheses were forwarded as to what might remedy the allegedly flawed back six. Now, as GAA fever sweeps across the capital, The Dublin forwards have become the great debate.

Dublin, runs the logic, have no scorers. Even Dessie, they say, can no longer be relied upon to nail those tricky one-footers. There have been calls for the demotion of Ian Robertson - not so long ago the brightest light in the forwards - and also for Colin Moran. Vinnie Murphy, they say, is the future of the Dublin forwards.

"I often wonder," admits Tom Carr, "why Dublin are continually scrutinised so much. Okay, so our last three points came from frees against Kerry , but why fixate on that? Why not analyse the run of scores against Sligo, when it was 3-14 out of 3-17 from play and concentrate on the opposite? And who is to say the players would not have scored those three points from play the last day had they not been fouled?"

The manager is not vexed, more curious at the latest turn in analysis and comment. He is the first to admit the city forwards are not operating at full tilt but endless fretting about their capacity to engineer scores from play does not, on balance, add up.

It is true that a midfielder, Ciβran Whelan, has set the team's championship standard, hitting 1-11 over the summer, but his contribution to the 2-11 total against Kerry was a single point.

Vinnie Murphy's timely introduction and evident nose for scores has led to calls for his inclusion the next day.

"Vinnie would love to start, no point in saying anything different. And he is a realistic contender at this stage but a lot of factors have to be weighed up," says Carr.

Past experience has repeatedly illustrated that knee-jerk selection of a player who has made a devastating impact from the bench often implodes on all concerned. Murphy's contribution as a substitute has given Dublin both a physical and spiritual lift. His measured minutes in the sky blue have worked out perfectly.

"In a way it would almost be a risk for Dublin to start Vinnie because he has been so influential coming in at vital times," reckons one of the capital's most beloved score-getters, Charlie Redmond.

"And Tom Carr is the one who will be familiar with the nuances of the team, he will know who is capable of giving what and for how long. Being on the bench is frustrating, yes, but often players channel that frustration into giving good performances," he says.

The Moran and Robertson situation is delicate for the manager. Both players are candid enough to allow they have not achieved their desired form but jettisoning one or both won't exactly enhance their confidence. Against that, a demotion would unburden them of mounting pressure to deliver and perhaps liberate them in the long run.

"There is a lot to consider. But we know what both those guys are capable of and often, it just takes a small thing to turn it around," says Carr, who will finalise his side tomorrow night.

Dublin have fired 8-73 in the 2001 championship, 8-52 coming from play. That is hardly the stat of a team over-reliant on dead-ball accuracy and suggests a team with formidable artillery.

"There does seem to be a lot said about this and I don't think it will help the lads' confidence," remarks Redmond.

"But I think it would be lot more worrying if we weren't creating the chances. Against Kerry, we had two clear goals we would normally stick away and also had a lot of points chances. Now, we will need to start sticking those way but it would be a much more serious issue if they simply weren't being created."

Spoken like a true forward.