The 2025 season gets underway this weekend, but even without the introduction of the new rules, there is a real curiosity about how Dublin will perform this year.
The retirements of stalwarts like James McCarthy and Brian Fenton mean that the Dubs look weaker than they have done in previous years, and although they have a bigger catchment area than anywhere else, it is still a massive task to replace those stars.
We shouldn't be surprised to learn then, that the manager has brought in a total of 16 new players to try and bolster the squad ahead of the National League.
Speaking to DubsTV, Farrell explained that the county underwent a very intense trialing period to try an unearth some new talent for the boys in blue.
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"We've gone through a fairly extensive trialling process for club players over the last couple of months.
"We got a development squad up and running then to allow players additional time for further assessment, and obviously then we made some decisions around who we are bringing into this year's panel.
"We have 16 new players in total so it's an interesting time for them … it's great to see new faces and plenty of energy around the place as well.
"There's some exciting prospects and we hope to use the league campaign this year to give them plenty of exposure and experience and to build towards the championship."
Davy Byrne also returns after a year away travelling, James Madden has come back from a stint in the AFL, and Eoghan O’Donnell has made the switch from the hurlers to the footballers.
Of course the new enhancements to the game mean that everyone is starting from a base point, including the might Dubs, who were so dominant under the old rules.
Farrell however, welcomes the changes and says that the players have been enjoying the training sessions so far under the new regulations.
"I'm all for it. Our players are definitely enjoying it. It's still very much a learning process. We don't have that much data to go on, a couple of challenge games, and they're slightly different to real competition.”
Whether or not Dublin are still the force they once were remains to be seen, but it is very likely that the capital will still be one of the main contenders for All-Ireland glory in 2025.
