HOW DOES DAVID Clifford think Gaelic football could improve?

The Kerry superstar looks to Australia when he’s asked what he’d like to see the new Football Review Committee introduce.

Jim Gavin and co. have been handed a ‘blank sheet’ to potentially ‘modify, remove or enhance’ any playing rule in the game. 

“The one thing that you see in the Aussie Rules is the 50-metre penalty,” says Clifford.

“A player gets a mark and if you step in front of him and try and disrupt him, basically try to slow him down, he gets a 50-metre penalty. So you could go from your own ’45 to in front of the goal. That should speed things up a bit.

“Also if there is a quick counter-attack and you get fouled and then if someone tries to disrupt it or slow it down, you would get a 50-metre penalty and it could be a guaranteed score.”

Food for thought.

The 2023 Footballer of the Year is also forthcoming with his views on the split season.

“Very happy with it. Just from a selfish point of view. This is as a teacher and no-one wants to really hear about a teacher talking about their holidays! But we get to have a month of the summer holidays after the All-Ireland so that’s very enjoyable. You get to go away or whatever, not that anyone wants to hear about that.

“But then the other side of it is the build-up to a game. I remember when I was in primary school and Kerry would be in the All-Ireland, that was brilliant to have that build-up as well in September.

“Look, there’s pros and cons. I’m not sure what they’ll do, we’ll see.”

The Football Review Committee, split season, and a potential return to September All-Ireland finals are all topical points currently.

The lure of American football and the NFL is another, with former Down U20 goalkeeper Charlie Smyth signing a three-year deal with the New Orleans Saints after impressing at a combine which Rory Beggan and Mark Jackson also attended. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers were in Dublin last week, while Clifford and some of his Kerry team-mates were recently put through their paces in an NFL challenge.

But the 25-year-old says he isn’t considering a switch.

“It’s only come up this year but it hasn’t crossed my mind. I’m a relatively safe person, settled in a job and in life. Having to turn my life upside down now would not be something that would appeal to me.

“It’s class to see the few lads that are doing it. You’d be hoping that some of them could get out on the pitch over there and see how they would get on.”

Football is obviously hugely important to Clifford, but it’s not the be all and end all.

That’s best seen as he reflects on the “disappointment and regret” of last year’s All-Ireland final defeat to Dublin. 

“Look, you must try to move on from it as well because your life can’t be lived by whether you win or lose a game. It’s going to be a long auld career for you then really because you’re going to have more losses than wins”

His two-year-old son, Óigí, doesn’t pay much attention to results, that’s for sure, but he’s starting to understand it all.

“He’s gone mad for it at the moment,” Clifford laughs. “He’s wearing jerseys and he loves it. He obviously doesn’t be too happy when you go out to training because he knows you’re going to be gone for a couple of hours.

David, Paudie and Óigí Clifford after the 2022 All-Ireland win. James Crombie / INPHO James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO

“He loves coming along with me to watch Fossa games. He’s great craic now at the moment. He’s copying celebrations of the soccer players that he sees or whatever. He’s getting to that age alright where you’d have an extra reason to go and play.”

One needs little reminder of the expectation on — or noise around — Clifford.

There are comparisons and parallels drawn weekly, the ‘generational talent’ tag one that has followed him for quite some time.

“There is uncomfortable nature to it,” the Fossa sharpshooter admits.

“From my parents, I learned there was never any need to be cocky or appear arrogant. Why not try and be humble? You don’t want to be talking about yourself in that light. You should try and let it brush off you.”

That expectation is perhaps heightened being from football-mad Kerry, but that’s not something that weighs heavily.

“The main thing is you try not to think about it like that; you try and have different targets for yourself, different targets for the team going into a game. So they can take your main focus as opposed to focusing on, ‘God I hope I play well or I hope we win’.

“You often hear [Manchester City manager Pep] Guardiola saying, ‘Take the emotion out of the game’. I try and do that — as boring as it sounds.”