Dublin GAA chief executive John Costello has reacted to the tiresome criticism being aimed at the All-Ireland champions.

Costello today released his annual report to next Monday night's Dublin GAA Convention, in which he launches a strongly-worded and passionate defence of Jim Gavin and his team:

"A quick spin through this type of 'commentary' post this year's decider against Mayo goes something like this - full-time whistle sounds; Stephen Cluxton lifts Sam; split Dublin in two, actually make that four; these conceited Dubs might be liked by some but they'll never be loved; these unpatriotic Dubs they should be forced to surrender the GPO!

"Some of the 'rhetoric' was in fact so puerile it was like a collaboration between Roger Hargreaves, the author of the Mr Men series of books, and the writers of that timeless classic, The Magic Roundabout!

"We've been down this road before with regard to the splitting of Dublin and I don't wish to copy and paste old convention reports here. Suffice to say that sense of place and identity is one of the core principles of Gaelic games. Dublin is a united county.

"However, this theme was given a fresh lick of paint this summer when it was implied that Dublin GAA was 'short-changing' young players in the capital and that it would be in the greater good if Dublin were split, for their own sake, if you wish. I presume that was an attempt at engineering dissent and not really a genuine, heartfelt plea for the 'boys on the hill' to be thrown a Dublin jersey?"

Addressing some of the so-called advantages that Dublin apparently benefit from, Costello adds: "Some of the commentary around Dublin's perceived 'advantages' - such as population and finance - is both repetitive and often, quite frankly, misinformed. Myth 1: Our senior teams have meals delivered to their homes on a daily basis or ever in fact. UNTRUE. Myth 2: Our senior teams are given five-star, 'all-expenses paid' treatment. UNTRUE."

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