Pat Gilroy has praised Dublin City University's brand of football and has credited it with playing a major role in last summer's All-Ireland success. Speaking at the DCU GAA end of year ball in Santry last night (2nd May, Crowne Plaza Hotel) the Dublin manager dismissed comments he has heard around the country that criticise DCU's elite entry system. He described them as nothing more than "jealousy" and said that other universities and colleges should be looking to introduce a similar scheme. He said DCU should not have to apologise for anything, but instead that they should be proud of what they have achieved. This is a sentiment that was reiterated by DCU manager Professor Niall Moyna in his address to the club members present.

Moyna, a guru on sports science and health (RTE's Operation Transformation), was involved in Gilroy's backroom staff for last year's championship. Gilroy commended DCU for helping his team not just with the obvious facilities and equipment but also with training knowledge and coaching expertise.

The Dublin boss also hit out at his counterparts in other counties who have a problem with third level football, saying that the "likes of Donegal and Monaghan, just two I can think of" have benefited greatly from players coming back to their teams from DCU.

The 2012 Sigerson winning team boasted four of Dublin's All-Ireland conquerors from last year; they were Philip McMahon, James McCarthy, Paul Flynn and Eoghan O'Gara. It also featured some of the other Dublin players who have broken into the squad for the league, the most notable of which is Johnny Cooper. The team also included GAA giants such as Laois' Colm Begley, Donegal's Michael Murphy and Sligo's David Kelly, and managed to win the national title with both of the latter two players being sidelined with injury for much of the campaign.

DCU's GAA academy has long been criticised for introducing a player entry system, similar to the United States model, which some critics claim attracts players with incentives that give it an unfair advantage over the other 3rd level institutions.

Seamus Conwell,
Economics, Politics and Law - final year,
DCU