Dublin keep their nerve to climb the mountain one more time

Dublin 1-15 Kerry 1-13

Dublin are back on top of football. The county’s ninth All-Ireland title in 12 years was won like so many of the others by just a score and like three previous, by defeating their great, historical rivals and outgoing champions, Kerry.

In keeping with the pre-match consensus, it was a hard-won final and ended with James McCarthy lifting Sam Maguire – just as Dublin had spent the last year contriving.

The comeback men all played crucial roles in a win that was almost as coveted as the very first, all those years ago when Stephen Cluxton kicked the injury-time winner in 2011.

Paul Mannion and Jack McCaffrey enlivened last autumn by declaring their return to intercounty activity. McCaffrey added menace after his 49th-minute introduction, drawing a couple of fouls, including one that yielded a converted free.

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Mannion was quality all afternoon, allowing for a couple of wides in the second half, in their own way testimony to his ambition and he finished with 0-5, including four from play.

Cluxton was again a model of distribution, his kick-outs beating the pressure and finding in the excellent Brian Howard a reliable receiver, who tirelessly dodged Dara Moynihan to make himself available.

Further gilding the occasion was the record of McCarthy, Cluxton and Michael Fitzsimons in winning a ninth medal, in the process surpassing a gang of Kerry players from their golden age.

Fitzsimons deserves special mention. Again, he had the least enviable job in football, marking David Clifford. It didn’t start promisingly. Although it took the champions six minutes to get the ball into their captain, he took the possession, drifted inside his marker and equalised an early Cluxton 45.

Dublin’s full back stuck to his task and did well enough to concede just 0-2 from play plus a couple of converted frees, a good exchange rate for that particular detail. His close attentions were in conjunction with a mixed day for Clifford, who had four wides and a shot dropped short.

He nearly got caught after slipping in the 32nd minute but Dublin defended the breach well with David Byrne intervening to win the ball.

Frustrations simmered to the point that in the 55th minute, both were yellow-carded for a tussle that initially had referee David Gough penalising Fitzsimons, who protested to the point where he looked like he might seek a court order. After consultation with his umpires, the referee changed the call and threw in the ball.

Yet, despite all of these positives, the match was in the melting pot for a long time and Kerry led by three on two occasions.

It had been such a cagey first half, Dublin largely in control even if not making it count on the scoreboard. They had brought in Ciarán Kilkenny as expected in place of Niall Scully but news that Seán Bugler had lost his fitness battle weakened the potential bench impact.

Stephen O’Brien had an excellent first half for Kerry dropping back, winning turnovers but by and large defences were on top. Dublin had just slipped two ahead in first-half injury-time after a foul by Paudie Clifford on Lee Gannon. It came from a 48-metre free from Cluxton, who was kicking dead ball for the first time since the 2015 final against the same opponents.

Just before the break, Moynihan found Clifford in the corner and as the cover converged, the latter threaded a fantastic pass out of the corner and into Paul Geaney, who kept his composure remarkably to dummy, turn, play the ball on his foot and finish past Cluxton and two defenders on the line.

Trailing by a point 0-6 to 1-4, after defending so well would have disappointed Dublin at half-time but there was so little in it and plenty of time left.

Howard equalised but Clifford shot a free. There were signs that Dublin were threatening a bit more. Eoin Murchan, who had been playing very well in breaking up attacks and breaking at pace, pushed forward but he and Con O’Callaghan got their signals mixed at the wrong time.

O’Callaghan took a long delivery from Lee Gannon and vibrated the crossbar in the 41st minute. Five minutes later Colm Basquel, who had just opened his own account with a point, got a hand in to turn over Gavin White, seize the ball and hare off towards the Hill.

He was sufficiently measured to lay it off to Paddy Small whose fierce shot took a visible deflection off Paul Murphy to divert Shane Ryan and send the ball into the right-hand side of the goal. Level, 1-8 apiece.

Kerry had their most impressive spell with the next three scores to wipe the goal and restore the three-point lead. O’Shea from a free and two from Paudie Clifford made it 1-11 to 1-8 heading into the final quarter.

The tale of the match is told by what unfolded. Dublin won the remainder of the match by 0-7 to 0-2. McCarthy was lucky to get just yellow for a head-high challenge on Graham O’Sullivan in the 59th minute but by then the match was level. Mannion kicked a free for a foul on McCaffrey; Basquel – transformed in the second half – added his second point and Mannion played in Small for another score.

Murchan prevented replacement Adrian Spillane from working in along the end line and Brian Fenton emulated his semi-final by going up the gears and kicking Dublin ahead for the first time in the second half in the 64th minute.

The match nonetheless was tied up at the start of six minutes of injury-time by O’Shea’s free for a tug on Clifford.

Basquel rounded off a breakthrough championship by making the critical inroads, an assist for Mannion to reclaim the lead and getting taken down for a free by Mike Breen.

Dean Rock, another replacement, kicked the free – as he had done so often in the nine-year journey of this remarkable team.

DUBLIN: Stephen Cluxton (0-2, one 45, one free); Eoin Murchan, Mick Fitzsimons, David Byrne; Brian Howard (0-1), John Small, Lee Gannon; Brian Fenton (0-2), James McCarthy; Paddy Small (1-1), Con O’Callaghan, Ciarán Kilkenny; Paul Mannion (0-5, one free), Cormac Costello (0-1, free), Colm Basquel (0-2).

Subs: Jack McCaffrey for Gannon (49 mins), Niall Scully for Costello (54), Seán McMahon for Howard (63), Cian Murphy for Murchan (65), Dean Rock (0-1, free) for P Small (69 mins).

KERRY: Shane Ryan; Paul Murphy, Jason Foley, Tom O’Sullivan; Graham O’Sullivan, Tadhg Morley, Gavin White; Diarmuid O’Connor, Jack Barry; Dara Moynihan, Seán O’Shea (0-5, four frees), Stephen O’Brien; Paudie Clifford (0-3), David Clifford (capt) (0-3, one free), Paul Geaney (1-1).

Subs: Brian Ó Beaglaoich for Murphy (55 mins), Adrian Spillane for Moynihan (58), Micheál Burns for O’Brien (56 mins), K Spillane (0-1) for Geaney (64), Mike Breen for Barry (66).

Referee: David Gough (Meath).