Diarmuid Connolly may well struggle to get a starting spot on Jim Gavin's Dublin football team but his return is a coup for the game, according to Oisin McConville.
Following the victory over Cork at the weekend in the Dubs’ opening game of the quarter-final series, Gavin confirmed that the 32-year-old is back training with the team.
Connolly has not played for Dublin in over 17 months and spent last summer in the USA, lining out for Donegal Boston.
A return to the States was on the cards, but a minor visa complication appears to have scuppered that and he now goes in search of a fifth All-Ireland title, having missed last year’s success.
"It is a bit of a shock," McConville told RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland. "Diarmuid was supposed to be playing a bit of football in the USA and that has changed.
"Not only is that for the betterment of Dublin, it is for the betterment of the country. He is one of those players with an X-factor and is one of those players that people all across the country want to see.
"I think it’s a positive move for both Dublin and Diarmuid Connolly."
Whether the St Vincent’s man can claim a starting spot in the Dublin juggernaut remains to be seen.
They racked up 5-18 against the Rebels without ever hitting top gear, and the likes of Niall Scully and Con O’Callaghan have thrived in Connolly's absence.
Can the gifted forward force his way in?
"You’d find it very difficult to see Diarmuid Connolly starting any of the next couple of games if he’s only just back training," mused McConville.
"Maybe he is somebody to be used as a substitute in an All-Ireland semi-final, final but he has made such a difference to Dublin, even as a bit-part player over the last number of years.
"He came on in an All-Ireland final two years ago and he really was the difference."
