Dublin head into next weekend's Allianz Football League Division 1 final against Derry in a great place, with some of Dessie Farrell’s supporting act putting pressure on for championship selection, according to Ciaran Whelan.
The All-Ireland champions demolished Tyrone on Sunday and now welcome Mickey Harte’s side to GAA HQ on Sunday, with many suspecting they will cross paths again towards the business end of the championship.
Farrell’s men began the league with back-to-back defeats, but the dismantling of Kerry and Derry in particular has served notice of their early season form and they appear in rude health with championship on the horizon.
Derry have impressed since their opening night win in Kerry, the only setback coming at home to the All-Ireland champions when Harte decided to rest a number of frontliners, most notably Conor Glass, in a five-point defeat at Celtic Park.
Speaking on the RTÉ GAA podcast, former Dublin midfielder Whelan says what will please Farrell most is how some of the supporting cast have stood out during the league.
With a number of their main men sitting out the early stages, Whelan name checked Lorcan O’Dell, Ross McGarry, Cian Murphy and Sean McMahon as those who have really caught the eye in blue.
"They have all had really good league campaigns, which is a huge positive," he said.
"There were a lot of guys he (Farrell) was giving game time to over the last couple of years, particularly last year, but it kind of faded out come championship.
"They have done really well in this league campaign.
"It’s something we really forget, you need time and experience in an inter-county jersey to really develop your confidence and composure.
"Some of those players were probably playing last year and taking wrong options, under a lot of pressure. They didn’t have a lot of confidence.
"All of a sudden they are now playing with that composure.
"Dessie is in a very good situation next weekend. He can go in and test their mettle now in that environment with the comfort of knowing that he might have Stephen Cluxton, Mick Fitzsimons, Paul Mannion, Jack McCaffrey and James McCarthy to come back in.
"It’s a great place for Dublin to be in."
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