Bastick says confidence in game plan was key to semi-final win

Having had time to reflect on Sunday's frenzied do-si-do with Kerry, Denis Bastick freely admits there were times when he feared Dublin had given themselves too much to do. In other years, the concession of three early goals in the semi-final would have been curtains. Not this time.

“Oh yeah, a couple of times. You’re four points down against Kerry. It was looking dodgy at times. First-half, watching the goals go in, you’re saying if they keep that up we’re in serious trouble. At times during the game it looked like it was getting away from us.

“We just had great trust and belief in ourselves. We went out with a game plan and we kind of stayed at that for the full 70 minutes or 80 minutes as it panned out. That was a good thing that we kept doing what we were doing and it paid off.

“We were trying to do the same thing nearly in every game, we were trying to perfect this game plan or this style of football. So, it kind of comes back to that. While we mightn’t have been under the cosh [previously this summer], we were always trying to play the same style of football and that’s what we tried there.”

It paid off in the end, clearly. But Kerry’s obduracy made Dublin wait until right at the death before Kevin McManamon’s goal won them the game. Was the strike accidental or just ruthless?

“We were slagging him on the bus alright,” says Bastick. “We were telling him, ‘Of course you meant it. Of course you meant it!’ Never tell anyone you didn’t mean to score a goal. Listen, Kev did what he always does, he comes on and goes for the jugular and he made the difference.

Lethal forwards
"I suppose, like, you might think probably the best thing to do is first it over the bar and run down the clock or whatever. But we've got these lethal forwards and they're all capable of scoring goals. Whether it's five minutes in or five minutes to go, if you're one on one, you should be taking a shot at the 'keeper."

On the basis that it takes one to know one, Bastick is as solid an authority on dislocated shoulders as anyone.

The Dublin midfielder has had both shoulders reconstructed over the course of his career, along with surgery on a broken ankle, a cruciate ligament refit and some knee cartilage that had to go.

So when he assesses Cillian O’Connor’s chances of appearing in the All-Ireland final, he’s not just licking his finger and holding it up to the wind. He knows whereof he speaks.

“It is possible,” he says. “You’re not going to be 100 per cent but, in fairness, Cillian O’Connor at 85, 90 per cent – his free-taking and scoring ability is a huge boost to any team. It’s a call for his manager.

“One shoulder, I got the op straight away and the other I tried to play on and it was very difficult. You do have the chance of it popping out again. But it’s an All-Ireland, they don’t come around too often. You’re going to do everything you can. I’m sure they have a great medical team as well, getting him right. Hopefully he’ll make it.”