Dublin lift the blues with stylish display

Echoes of a deified past and bright new future around Jones's Road yesterday. A crowd of 65,898 descended upon the inner city for the latest epic between Dublin and Meath on the day when the GAA unveiled Croke Park in its full splendour, writes Keith Duggan

The older generation looked slightly baffled and astonished at the scale and detail of the place. Gone was the dark and enigmatic cathedral of great days past. Tomorrow's Croke Park is perfect and European and breathtaking.

Only the Nally Stand, quaint and poignant among its towering sister monoliths, and Hill 16 remain of the old ground. And it was in playing towards those singing sky blue masses on the historic mound that Dublin rediscovered the lost sense of birthright and boldness that marked so many famous performances in the past.

Tom Lyons patrolled the edges of a field that had a touch of artwork, marching like a modern day Napoleon as his young Dublin side rose up against the Royal county and reclaimed the city ground from Meath on a scoreline of 2-11 to 0-10. It has been a while since the Hill has been in full voice in high summer.

"I just thought we put our bodies on the line," Lyons would say later. "And maybe when Dublin players do that we aren't such a bad team. I thought we played some lovely football too and probably we had the bounce of the ball."

In truth, Dublin had everything. Seconds in, they issued a statement when John Cullinane was flattened as he tried to kick a point. Stretcher-bearers carried the Meath midfielder from the ground and from there, the visitors' foolproof blueprint began to look dated.

Dublin mixed iron and silk. They defended with a toughness and discipline that is so often associated with their opponents. And there were shades of Kevin Heffernan's demi-gods from the 1970s in the way the city team played in the first half.

They reaped havoc along the right wing, with Colin Moran and Alan Brogan, son of 1970s icon Bernard, each firing three exquisite points.

"We knew Dublin were really up for this," admitted Meath's Evan Kelly later. "And they looked like a new team out there really. Their number 15 and 13 - I can't remember which was which - but they were brilliant. They really roasted our lads. And all the backs, they really wanted to win it. So fair play to them.

"If you keep someone down long enough, they'll eventually bounce back and we had Dublin down for a long time."

This was not classic Meath, the devastating Gilesian orchestra that we have seen so often failed to work in harmony. For once, the Meath back six were bereft of composure as Dublin ran pretty blue ribbons through them.

Graham Geraghty shone brilliantly for a while but looked a troubled man near the close of the match. And Ollie Murphy's late cameo was not enough to swing it.

But even on their knees, Meath have pride. Down 1-10 to 0-5 with just half an hour left, they launched one of those patient, dead-eyed comebacks that have haunted so many teams.

"We had a young team and we attacked and attacked and then when we hit the wall, it was tough. But we got through it," said Lyons.

A second goal from Ray Cosgrove, once a lost soul on the Dublin scene, arrived like a comet and the ghosts of the past few years just vanished. The big Dublin forward charged onto a dropping ball and knocked Meath goalkeeper Cormac Sullivan as he fisted his second goal. The Meath defenders were furious but the score stood and that was it.

"I wonder," mused Meath manager Seán Boylan quietly, "what would happen if a Meath player did a full frontal on a goalkeeper? What would happen, lads? Whatever chance we might have was gone with that. It was a terrible decision. But I don't want to take anything from Dublin because they played beautiful football - deserved it."

In the other classic derby down south, Cork breezed past an out-of-sorts Kerry team by 0-15 to 1-9. Affected by the sad passing of Páidí Ó Sé's brother Michael, father of three of the team's players, Kerry never fully came to terms with the occasion.

For the first time, the Kingdom will travel via the beggar's route. Their presence, along with Meath, means dangerous days ahead for the remaining championship innocents.