ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE:WITH THE Dublin County Board predicting a crowd in excess of 30,000 for Saturday's double bill of national league matches in Croke Park the future of the so-called Spring Series looks secure.

Dublin’s meeting with Down in football, and the curtain-raiser of Dublin against Kilkenny in hurling, is set to push the combined attendance for the series to over 100,000.

It helps that both the Dublin footballers and hurlers are still pressing for a place in the league final – Pat Gilroy’s team only need a point from the Down game to secure a place in the football final for the first time since 1999; while Anthony Daly’s team can put themselves back in contention for a place in the hurling final for the first time 1946 if they beat Kilkenny.

On that basis, it’s also an important date for Down and Kilkenny.

Down, amazingly, haven’t played Dublin in a league fixture since 1996, and their last meeting with Dublin in Croke Park was the 1994 All-Ireland final – which Down won 1-12 to 0-13.

If James McCartan’s team can claim the two points on Saturday they would keep themselves in the hunt for a place in the league final, albeit with Kerry to come in their final round. Dublin conclude their campaign against bottom-placed Galway.

Dublin’s first three games in the Spring Series have attracted strong attendances – starting with the 35,028 against Cork (and Tipperary in hurling), then 23,720 against Kerry, and 18,960 against Mayo, for a total of 77,708.

Anything above 23,000 on Saturday evening would therefore push the combined attendance above 100,000.

Ticket sales for the series hit a technical glitch at first, as the GAA switched their preferred ticket agency, but were competitively priced, with the four-match series available for €45. Stand tickets for Saturday’s double bill are priced at €13 for adults, with various family concessions available – with popular twins act Jedward again provided the interval entertainment.

There was some disappointment when Dublin’s request to play the Mayo game on the Friday evening was turned down by the GAA’s Central Competitions Control Committee (CCCC), prompting strong comments from Dublin chief executive John Costello: “We are going to have to review it all, at the end of the series,” he said. “We’ll sit down and review every aspect of it, from that initial ticketing fiasco, to our ability to deliver something like a Friday night fixture, when both counties are willing.”

However, the Spring Series was launched as a three-year venture, and it seems highly unlikely the Dublin County Board would consider moving their home league games back to Parnell Park next year.

Comments from GAA director general Páraic Duffy over the weekend backed this up, when he said “for Dublin to go back now to playing their matches in Parnell Park would be really disappointing. I think when Dublin sit back and look at it, they will realise that the venture has worked really, really well. I would hope that the Spring Series will continue next year and every year.”

Duffy also suggested Friday evening matches could be considered by the CCCC in the future, provided they were between neighbouring counties.

In the meantime, Down will be closer to their All-Ireland final line-up on Saturday as they look to end Dublin’s unbeaten run in the Division One.

Goalkeeper Brendan McVeigh, who missed the last two games against Cork and Monaghan with a hamstring injury, is back training and therefore likely to resume his position between the posts.

Defenders Dan McCartan and Damien Rafferty are also in contention for starting places. McCartan did appear as a substitute in the eight-point win over Monaghan last Saturday week, while Rafferty – who hasn’t played for Down since their All-Ireland defeat to Cork last September – is now poised for his first start of the season.

Gilroy will, as usual, name his team on Friday morning, with few if any changes expected from the team that survived the 4-15 to 3-13 shoot-out against Mayo last Sunday week.

Last year’s stand-in captain David Henry is back home this week after some extensive travels in recent months, but is unlikely to return to the starting line-up before the championship.

Rory O’Carroll is also unlikely to feature in the remaining rounds of the league as he completes his studies in France.