'Brian Fenton the complete package': Peter Canavan analyses Dublin's midfielder

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Peter Canavan analyses the impact of Dublin's talisman

If Mayo are to have any chance of wrestling the Sam Maguire Cup from Dublin's possession on Saturday, they will need to find a way of nullifying Brian Fenton.

The Raheny midfielder has been in top form this season, helping the Sky Blues to reach another All-Ireland final.

Remarkably, he is still yet to lose a championship game with Dublin, in his sixth season.

"A couple of weeks ago, Kieran Donaghy described him as the best midfielder ever. After watching him perform [against Cavan], you would have difficulty in questioning that assessment," said Peter Canavan on Inside The Game.

"Everything good about Brian Fenton, we got to see it. As a midfielder, you want him to secure possession and win ball. He won five kick-outs.

"Assists, setting up the play for inside men, he was very much to the fore of that. But one aspect of his game that has improved is his scoring from distance."

His stats during the win over Cavan tell the story of his dominance.

"Thirty-one possessions in the game, second only to Robbie McDaid. Twenty-one hand-passes, eight kick-passes. His scoring - he kicked four points, but he could have easily kicked six or seven points, he offloaded on a number of occasions," continued Canavan.

"Up until this year, I would say he was shooting from very safe angles, or well within the scoring zone. But [against Cavan] he was kicking points from outside that zone. It's a measure of the confidence of the man. And they all went over. That was the best of it. So he is the complete package, the complete article.

"If Mayo are going to get anything out of the game, Matthew Ruane or whoever they place [on him], they've got to stifle this man's influence if they are going to compete with this Dublin team."

Mayo will need to keep tabs on Fenton

Indeed, Fenton's tendency to only take on high-percentage shots is emblematic of the entire team.

"If you look at the map of scoring zones for so many counties, you'll see pot-shots from well outside the D. From the 45, from the side-lines and all the rest. Dublin were guilty of two or three of those," explained Canavan.

"But their scoring efficiency was in and around 70 per cent from play. Eighteen of their scores were shots that we taken from inside the 30-metre line. And all very close.

"That has come from relentless coaching, and work on the training ground," he continued.

"They simply don't shoot from silly angles. And if you compare that with Cavan's scoring zone, there were very few kicked from inside the D. They were all forced. So Dublin are forcing teams to shoot from distance, and to shoot under pressure.

"They are clinical up front. They have plenty of ball going in there. But the men up front aren't stupid when they get it either. They throw it around until it's time for the right man to take that shot. Inevitably, that ends up with a score.

"I know as a forward myself, there's nothing more that you love than hitting the ball with the outside of your boot from close to the side-line, or from the 45 or whatever, knowing that you can do it. But you might only score 50 per cent of them. And they're wonderful points whenever they come off, and everyone is patting you on the back.

"But Dublin simply don't kick from silly angles. Talk about being resourceful. And they'll get a mouthful from some of their colleagues if they do take the wrong option. So that's the level they are at. That's why they are going for six in a row."

Watch Dublin vs Mayo in the All-Ireland final live on Sky Sports Mix from 4pm Saturday.