Former manager Humphrey Kelleher says Dublin need to produce better hurlers if they're to make further progress.

In recent years, Anthony Daly has helped develop the Dubs from also-rans into real contenders but Kelleher is adamant that the capital needs more quality if they're to take the next step.

"Irrespective of who manages the team, we need to produce better players," he notes in The Irish Independent. "I would say there are very few what I would call natural hurlers coming through at the minute and we have to change that.

"Like you saw Seamus Callanan win the ball and shrug off his marker and score points. It was very easy for him.

"Some of the players weren't as effective as they have been. Players made mistakes and were too far off their men. You have to ask why that is and look at our whole structure and our coaching. There's only so much a manager can do.

"We need to look at the fundamentals. Their first touch was off and in hurling that's everything. It would be interesting to do a study on what percentage of first touch in Dublin is right compared to say Kilkenny.

"I'd say in Kilkenny you are looking at 80-90% while in Dublin it's maybe only 50-60%.

"When we drew up the original plan for hurling in Dublin we simply wanted to get a hurl into the hands of players. It was about participation levels and that's what was needed at the time.

"Now that needs to change again. It's about getting those players to a level where they can compete at the highest level and where they can do it better. We need to rewrite the blueprint for success." Tweet

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