Such is the pitiful resistance to Dublin within Leinster that Tomás Ó Sé has labelled the provincial championship a "joke".

These days the Dubs are practically unstoppable in the race for the Delaney Cup and have won every title, bar one, since 2005.

Tradition and population would suggest Kildare and Meath should be genuine contenders but both were dismissed with ease over the past two seasons, the Lilywhites coming the closest to an upset - that is keeping the margin of defeat in last year's final down to nine points. 

Jim Gavin’s triple All-Ireland champions open up their campaign at the end of the month against either Wicklow or Offaly and are 20-1 on favourites to continue their dominance.

Speaking at the launch of RTÉ Sport’s GAA Championships coverage, the former Kerry star said: "Leinster is a joke at the moment.

"Take Dublin out of it and you’ve a good Leinster championship.

"The rest are so far behind at the moment. Everyone talks about Dublin, whatever, how brilliant [they are].

"I think teams are beaten before they go out against Dublin.

"It’s ridiculous; I wouldn’t even watch a Leinster championship match now."

O’Se, a five-time All-Ireland winner, also branded the decision to pencil in a potential Munster SFC semi-final a week after the quarter-final as "wrong".

The winners of the Tipperary-Waterford quarter-final clash on 19 May will progress to a semi-final against Cork.

If Tipperary won, that semi-final was scheduled to take place in Thurles on 3 June, but as their hurlers face Waterford on the same day in Limerick there would be a clash for Premier County supporters.

The footballers have now been slated to meet Rebels on 26 May instead .

"I think that’s wrong," he said. "It’s a disgrace.

"Look, hurling and football are different sports and the fact that they are moving a football fixture because of a hurling fixture is wrong."

He also predicted that should that fixture come to pass, it wouldn’t go as many people though: "I think Tipp could turn over Cork."