All-Ireland quarter finals

It is the veteran Dublin defender's attention to detail, resilience, determination and versatility, according to long time Cuala team-mate Luke Keating, ...

He just plays the game and helps the team." When Pat Gilroy came looking for new blood in the wake of the 'startled earwigs', Fitzsimons was high on his list. It's not just his ability but his determination to achieve something with the club. "He has maintained his strengths and retained a keen interest in the changes that happen in the game." Fitzsimons is driven, on and off the pitch. He's level headed enough to decide on his future without being influenced by results." "He's down to earth in that way, he's not a superstar - he's been very happy to be in the backfield and not the spotlight. "You look at how he performed in his debut season with Dublin, how football was played then and is played now, and he's one of those players who has stayed in the same position all the time. "Defending is his main passion, he is willing to go one on one against the game's best players and take that chance. "He has a lot of belief in himself and is a confident person, though the reason I'm on the phone to you and not him is that he's very conscious of the line between confidence and arrogance. "It hasn't all been plain sailing, he was out of the team in certain years but it shows his character even more that he didn't throw his toys out of the pram and kept fighting. He seized the opportunity and was in the Dublin team that broke the mould in 2011.