Three years after last donning the sky blue, former Dublin footballer Conor McHugh is set for a return to the Dublin inter-county scene with the capital's hurling team.
McHugh was a hugely promising young footballer and was crowned the 2014 U21 Player of the Year before joining up with Jim Gavin's senior squad the following year.
McHugh then spent seven years with the Dublin footballers, making 20 appearances and winning four All-Irelands in a decorated stint with the Dubs, but unfortunately never managed to nail down a starting spot in the face of an extremely talented squad, last appearing for the side under Dessie Farrell in 2021.
However, now at 30 years of age, a revitalised McHugh who has just added to his medal collection with Na Fianna's All-Ireland winning hurlers looks set to once again appear in blue.
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19 January 2025; Conor McHugh of Na Fianna in action against James Sweeney of Sarsfields during the AIB GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Club Championship final match between Na Fianna and Sarsfields at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile
Conor McHugh set to join Dublin hurlers
McHugh's introduction to the hurling set-up is likely to have been swayed by the appointment of Na Fianna manager Niall O Ceallachain to the top job in Dublin, with the pair having just won the club All-Ireland together - a campaign in which McHugh starred at fullback throughout.
While none of Na Fianna's All-Ireland victors appeared in Dublin's league opener against Antrim, speaking to Paul Keane of the Examiner after his side claimed a 1-25 to 0-14 win, O Ceallachain revealed that McHugh would be one of several Na Fianna stars to rejoin the squad.
The obvious ones with Na Fianna are the Curries and Donal (Burke) but also we will have Brian Ryan and we'll have Conor McHugh in who has recently committed to senior hurling with Dublin.
So what's happening is that we've been operating off a certain number up to now. Over the next 48 hours, we'll be making a couple of calls around refining a panel down. There have been lads who have been with us over the last two or three months and who have put a huge amount of work in who unfortunately won't be part of things moving forward. That's just the nature of it.
Brian Ryan was the other big name confirmed by O Ceallachain after Saturday's win, with the new manager confirming that the former All-Ireland winner with Limerick who transferred to Na Fianna in 2023 would join up with the squad shortly.
Whether the additions will give Dublin the revitalisation they need to return to the top flight of hurling only time will tell, but it certainly bodes well for the county side who will be hoping to use Na Fianna's recent win as a launchpad for greater things.
