By Michael McMullan

FORMER Armagh defensive star Enda McNulty feels there must always be a focus on the “fundamental” area of defending before any consideration of the incoming rule changes.

Speaking on this week’s Gaelic Lives podcast, to look back at Queen’s 2000 Sigerson success, the 2002 All-Ireland winner speaks in depth about his university manager Dessie Ryan’s coaching.

As CEO of his own company, McNulty Performance, McNulty has worked with high performance groups like the Irish Rugby team.

“I think the fundamentals were very important 25 years ago and I think they’re as important today,” McNulty said of defensive skills.

He also outlined how he focused on the defending of others in picking up nuggets to bring to his own game.

There was reference to watching All-Star defender Sean Marty Lockhart in action, stationing himself at one end of the pitch and moving to the other end at half-time to hone in on Lockhart’s movement.

“I learned a lot from Sean Marty,” McNulty said. “Dessie (Ryan) was brilliant with the fundamentals.

“Very often, if you’re playing the full-back line, you’d move across that whole line.

“Sometimes you’d go out the centre half-back depending on where your man was playing.

“I think you’re going to be able to see very quickly who’s got it and who hasn’t got it.”

Fully aware the rules have changed ahead the NFL resumption later this month, McNulty stresses how he would be steering a team if he was in a GAA dressing room this season.

“What I would say is get the fundamentals down first before you even think about the rules,” he pointed out. “The rules are only as good as your ability to execute the fundamental skills of Gaelic football under pressure relentlessly.

“You get the one-on-one skills of a corner-back or full-back,” he continued.

“The subtleties like being able to hold a man off, being able to shepherd a man towards the sideline or being able to break a ball at 20 metres.

“Being able to pick a ball up in the square and get out of there, take a bounce and be 10 metres further down the pitch.

“For me those fundamentals won’t change no matter how much the rules have changed.”

The change now will be that defenders will be “more exposed” with the 3v3 rule limiting the number of players in each half of the pitch.

That said, defending will still come back to the basics of the game.

“Obviously you’re going to be able to see who’s very good at those one-on-one skills,” he said of the white heat of championship action.

The full Gaelic Lives interview with Enda McNulty is now available blow.