IT'S HERE.
This weekend's papers are full of Championship previews, looking ahead to the beginning of the football Championship a week after the beginning of the football Championship.
Tomás O'Sé has been writing in the Irish Independent of how it hurts to be reduced to the role of spectator and analyst, while Jim McGuinness has resumed his role as a columnist with the Irish Times.
McGuinness' columns are generally excellent, and this week's offering is no different, as he looks ahead to the Championship by delving into the rivalries by which it is defined.
Mayo notwithstanding, Kerry/Dublin is the pivot around which this year's competition will likely turn, and it is that rivalry to which McGuinness devotes most attention. McGuinness is full of praise for the Kingdom's bettering of the Dubs in the league final, while admitting that that defeat will "sharpen Jim Gavin's pencil", and refocus the Dubs ahead of their All-Ireland defence.
Writing about Dublin, McGuinness accentuated their evolution in style, and admits that he is not fully convinced of the merits of the new system, and anticipates a change as the summer progresses, particularly in response to Kerry reacquainting them with Croke Park defeat. McGuinness is the last manager to win a Championship game against Dublin
There has been a shift in Dublin's style of play over the past year, from the high-octane running patterns with third man runners flooding through and lightning ball movement, to a new, more patient approach designed to break down teams ho set up defensively. They execute the new approach very well and draw teams out.
But I am not 100 per cent convinced by it. I feel the other system is so hard to stop over 70 - or 80 - minutes.
There is also a generation of brilliant Dublin players wondering how long they have left in that jersey.
What kind of response will that provoke from them? So what game plan will they unveil this summer?
That final question is one of the most intriguing elements of the summer ahead.
Read McGuinness' column in today's Irish Times, or over on their website.
