Mayo clash to bring up lights on new Dublin era

The next chapter in Dublin football will be officially launched under new floodlights at Parnell Park when Mayo travel to the capital for their opening game of the national football league on Saturday, February 5th.

The clash between Dublin, under new management, and the All-Ireland finalists will not be the first match played at night in Donnycarney as the Dublin County Board hopes to host their own pre-Christmas opening ceremony, which will involve the county seniors. At present the lights are undergoing testing. The state-of-the-art floodlights cost in excess of €800,000, with the majority of fundraising being done by the county board, although there is further grant money expected from the sports council (via national lottery funds), the ministry of arts, sport and tourism, as well as the Leinster and central councils.

Friday or Saturday night league matches are expected to generate sizeable crowds in Parnell Park as the floodlit venture in Cork showed when they launched last year's NFL in Páirc Uí Rinn against Kerry. The two old foes meet again on Friday February 4th in a repeat of last year's opening fixture.

The rest of the league starts the following Sunday with this year's division two champions Offaly facing Westmeath, while Donegal host Tyrone in the other division 1A encounter.

The hurling league begins on February 20th with champions Galway, also expecting to have a new manager by that stage, at home to Dublin. All-Ireland champions Cork are also on home turf against Limerick while Waterford face Kilkenny.

The finals are initially scheduled to take place on the first weekend in May with the football final on Sunday May 1st and hurling on the bank holiday Monday. However, if Galway are involved in the football final it will be moved to April 26th, as they play their first championship match in New York on May 1st in Gaelic Park. This would see the hurling final move back to the Sunday.