Peter Canavan: Dublin need Stephen Cluxton clarity, Tyrone must learn to mix defence and attack

The big news coming out of last weekend is that Stephen Cluxton is not part of the Dublin panel.

Nonetheless, Dessie Farrell insisted that the goalkeeper is not retired.

People are passing comment and don't know what's going on with Cluxton. Until he comes out and speaks one way or the other, it is difficult for us to know.

Ironically, for a man that shies away from publicity, the fact that he's doing this now is bringing himself to the centre of attention.

If he were to come out and clarify one way or the other, it would put things to bed. Either say that he's retiring or that he intends to come back in a few weeks. It would make it much easier for Dublin, and it would stop journalists asking Dessie Farrell about it every week.

So it's a strange one, but there's only one man that can provide any answers, and he's remaining tight-lipped at the minute.

Tyrone must mix defence and attack

We have seen a style change from Tyrone under their new management this season.

In the modern game, you have to learn to play both ways.

Dublin are the best at it, obviously. If teams want to go man-to-man and take Dublin on, they can play that type of football, no problem. But if it requires a defensive style, Dublin are very good at dropping 13 or 14 bodies behind the ball and playing the running game.

Top-level Gaelic football in 2021 requires teams to be agile. Being labelled as either a running team or a kicking team is not good enough. You need to be adept at both.

It's been a few weeks now since Tyrone were humbled in Killarney. The one positive is that it's better to get a wake-up call like that in the National League rather than in a knockout championship contest.

The Kingdom went to town on our kick-outs that day. Tyrone don't have the luxury of having a big ball-winning midfielder like other teams. Cavan have Gearoid McKiernan. But the Red Hands don't have that option.

It has been a trait with Tyrone teams in previous years, we've had to manage without being blessed with big dominant midfielders.

Up front, the forward division has been playing in patches. At times, they looked very good. At times, they looked ordinary. Tyrone still have it all to prove.

In terms of the positives from the National League, they competed well in all the games barring Kerry, while trying out different players and implementing a different style of football. That's going to take time, and supporters are going to need patience in that regard.

Tyrone must be wary this weekend. Yes, Cavan were relegated to Division 4, but you only have to look at what they achieved last year.

The Breffni County were written off time and time again in 2020.

They had their backs against the wall against Monaghan. I recall saying in the studio at half-time that the game was over, that there was no way back for Cavan. They found a way back and they won it.

In the semi-final against Down, Down blitzed them in the first-half and Cavan looked dead and buried. But they found a way back.

Prior to the final to Donegal, there wasn't one pundit tipping Cavan to win it, and they produced an upset.

That was despite the fact they had a poor National League. It's the same again this year. It's obvious Mickey Graham can lift these boys, and there is a big performance in them.

You can be rest assured, nobody in Tyrone is getting carried away after our own performance against Kerry. I don't think you'll find too many people in Tyrone taking Cavan for granted. It's very much all to play for.

Kerry moving through the gears

Before the championship, had you given me a choice of predicting either Clare or Tipperary to compete with Kerry, I would have opted for the Banner County.

Yet the Kingdom disposed of them with ease.

It's going to be something similar on Saturday. Kerry have too much fire-power for the reigning Munster champions.

Peter Keane has been trying out different things this year, like pushing up on opposition kick-outs.

Up front, he has been rotating his forward line at various stages throughout games. At times you'll have Paul Geaney and David Clifford in the full-forward line. At times it might be Seán O'Shea and David Clifford in there. Paudie Clifford and Dara Moynihan can swap in and out. Keane is using these games to try different systems. It appears to be working well. The players are buying in, doing what's requested. And they look good.

But it's going to be later on in the year when we see what they're really made of. But so far, they're flying high.

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Donegal to see of stern Derry test

I'm really looking forward to seeing Derry on Sunday. They've been blowing teams away in Division 3, and that speaks volumes for the job that Rory Gallagher has done with this side. They didn't just scrape promotion, they won it with ease.

Look at their performance against Offaly. The Faithful County went on to beat a strong Louth side and ran Kildare close. That gives you an indication of the progress Derry have made.

Nobody knows this Donegal team better than Rory Gallagher. But I think Derry have it all to do. They will certainly be competitive, but Donegal simply have too many options up front. When you look at the Derry bench, they don't have that.

Declan Bonner was able to call on Jamie Brennan the last day to make an impact. Regardless of whether Michael Murphy plays, I think they hold too much firepower, and they proved against Down, they could work their way through a defensive system. That will get them over the line on Sunday.

Watch Tyrone vs Cavan and Tipperary vs Kerry live on Sky Sports Arena from 3:30pm Saturday.