TYRONE legend Sean Cavanagh has tipped Dublin to become the first ever county to win five All-Ireland titles on the trot.
Cavanagh retired after last month’s semi-final defeat to Dublin and revealed that he actually thought beforehand that the holders were overrated.
But he quickly changed his tune when he played against the back-to-back All-Ireland champions who streaked to a 12-point win.
The former Footballer of the Year described them as the best team he ever played against, or even witnessed, and predicted they will beat Mayo ‘comfortably’ in Sunday week’s final.
That would be their third All-Ireland win in a row, though Cavanagh said the reality is that they could easily win eight titles between 2011 and 2020.
They’ve already claimed four of the last six All-Irelands and Cavanagh nodded enthusiastically when it was suggested that five-in-a-row is a possibility now.
“Big time, I think they could possibly win eight out of 10,” said Cavanagh.
“All things being equal, and the Super 8s will probably help them because they’ve got the strength on the bench for the extra games, they’re capable of doing it.
“It was their whole system of play, their whole machine that impressed me most. Jim Gavin is obviously a very meticulous man. I fear for the rest of the teams, and that’s being hand on heart.
“I’m not sure that if Dublin continue on this curve that they’re on, the way they’re playing, the way they’re dominating Gaelic football, who can compete. I fear most teams are going to really, really struggle. The GAA are going to struggle to create spectacles.”
Dublin have only lost one Championship game in almost five seasons under Gavin who has agreed to remain in charge until the end of 2019 at least.
Their big win over Tyrone, the back-to-back Ulster champions, has reignited the debate about whether Dublin should be split in two, to level the playing field.
“I know if that was being suggested for Tyrone, I would be laughing it out the door,” said Cavanagh (left).
“I don’t think that will work. I don’t think it’s a viable option. I have no idea how you stop it, that’s the reality.
“They’ve obviously got the numbers, they’ve got the resources, they’re on the crest of a wave, the commercialism, everything is all there for them.
“There’s a serious amount of catching up to be done, even from where we’re at in Tyrone. We felt we could catch them on a particular day but it wasn’t the case. I think Dublin are going to dominate for a while to come.”
Yet Cavanagh was convinced only weeks ago that Dublin weren’t all they were cracked up to be.
“Dublin surprised me,” he said. “I didn’t, prior to that match, buy into the hype that Dublin were that good.
“I felt that the way we played would be good enough to stop them. But they obviously attacked the wings, every one of their players were incredibly pacey, incredibly powerful, playing off the shoulder football.
“They had match-ups that worked. They had it all. I have to admit, they were the best team I’ve ever played against at inter-county level. I told the Dublin lads that after the game. I believe they’re the best team I ever seen play the game.
“That made it easy for me in the aftermath, to retire. If we were going to do it again, I know that we would do things differently but would even that be good enough to stop Dublin? I’m not sure. I think they’re that far ahead at the moment.”
