Will the cult of Clifford continue to grow in 2023? All-Ireland contenders’ New Year’s wish list

The race for Sam Maguire has already resumed, with teams back training for the 2023 season.

The first intercounty football games of the new campaign get underway next week with O’Byrne, McGrath and Dr McKenna Cup matches all pencilled in for Wednesday night.

Ahead of the season throwing in, The Irish Times looks at what might be on the New Year’s wish list for the main All-Ireland SFC contenders.

DUBLIN

It might not be a farewell tour, but there is a real sense of the band getting back together for one concerted effort to try deliver a show-stopping year. Dessie Farrell’s hope is that the returning duo of Jack McCaffrey and Paul Mannion, coupled with the arrival of Pat Gilroy to the backroom team, can elevate Dublin to All-Ireland glory.

It is a calculated gamble by all parties. Mannion is currently on the way back from ankle surgery while McCaffrey hasn’t played at the top level since early 2020 – so it remains to be seen if the duo are capable of hitting the high notes of the past.

Farrell will also be hoping Con O’Callaghan can stay injury-free next season. Dublin were very close to beating Kerry this year and certainly the addition of McCaffrey, Mannion and a fully fit O’Callaghan strengthens their hand considerably.

The Dubs have a cause to chase down now and their wish for 2023 is clear – for the returning players to alter the balance of power and help Dublin win Sam Maguire, which in turn would end Kerry’s reign. So, it’s more of a greatest hits tour they are embarking upon.

DONEGAL

“I’m not leavin, I’m not f**kin leavin. The show goes on, this is my home, they are going to need a f**kin wrecking ball to take me out of here.”

With that, Michael Murphy drops the mic.

You join in as the chant gathers momentum . . .’Murphy, Murphy, Murphy’.

Suddenly, the drool rolling down your right cheek bothers you to stir from your sofa slumber. You’re not sure how long you had nodded off, but the tea on the side table is now lukewarm and all the evidence strewn along the floor suggests the dog has taken off to the kitchen with the last of the selection box.

On the TV screen, Leonardo DiCaprio is roaring and shouting about not leaving. And then the reality kicks in. The Wolf of Wall Street is a decent movie and, all things considered, it hasn’t been a bad Christmas in Donegal.

But Michael Murphy is still retired.

If you had only one wish, you’d wish it weren’t so.

KERRY

The cult of David Clifford continues to grow to the extent he is selling out junior club championship matches these days. It is the kind of adulation and attention that could spook a player.

But none of it seems to get in on him, instead Clifford continues to feed the opinion that he is the greatest we have ever seen. He has been appointed Kerry captain for 2023 as the Kingdom look to win back-to-back All-Ireland titles for the first time since 2006-07.

Kerry will need to address issues around midfield but more than anything they will need Clifford to keep sprinkling the magic dust on the pitch and ignore all the fuss off it. Jack O’Connor can only wish the crown continues to sit lightly on the king.

MAYO

In recent years, there always seem to be players leaving the Mayo squad just as others are returning. If only Mayo could get the whole gang together, who knows where the journey goes.

The latest high-profile player to leave is Oisín Mullin. Wishing for Mullin to return is, right now, fanciful, but there is no doubt his absence damages Mayo’s All-Ireland aspirations. Mullin is one of the best footballers in the country and over recent seasons he had become a key leadership figure on the Mayo team.

But Lee Keegan has been even more important to Mayo for a much longer period. In Mullin’s absence, they will need him again next year. Stephen Rochford recently indicated he was hopeful Keegan would be involved for 2023. Kevin McStay could certainly do without entering his maiden season at the helm minus both Mullin and Keegan, two players he would have wanted to build a team around.

GALWAY

If Donegal fans spent some of the Christmas period watching The Wolf of Wall Street, then Galway supporters will hope the theme of their 2023 season is not The Hangover.

Having contested this year’s All-Ireland final, Galway enter the new campaign with increased expectancy on their shoulders. They must be careful to avoid second season syndrome, when a lacklustre season follows an encouraging one.

Off the bat, the Tribesmen could do with having a positive league campaign and starting the year strongly because there is no guarantee they could pick things up should they ship some early round losses.

Galway’s Division One schedule starts off with games against Mayo, Roscommon and Tyrone, so a solid opening for Padraic Joyce’s men would be useful in harnessing some momentum from 2022 rather than allowing any pressure to build.

Before a ball is kicked they remain All-Ireland contenders, but Galway must be careful to avoid a hangover from their 2022 campaign.

TYRONE

Speaking of hangovers, Tyrone’s 2022 campaign wasn’t exactly one of the great Sam Maguire defences. They managed just one victory in their first five league games, all against the backdrop of players leaving the panel for various reasons.

And it all kind of spiralled from there, losing to Derry in an Ulster quarter-final and then Armagh in the qualifiers. The 2021 All-Ireland champions just couldn’t get it together in 2022.

So, after a year with so many distractions the Tyrone management will be wishing to see their team return to the performance levels of 2021 while maintaining a settled, competitive squad. They need to show they were no one-hit wonders.