Kerry have that extra bit of class at the finish

All-Ireland SFC Semi-final: Kerry 1-15, Dublin 0-16All credit to Dublin for the character they displayed in fighting to the bitter end, but the sheer class of Kerry prevailed. We saw all that is good about Kerry football yesterday. The simple things were performed with efficiency; they were composed on the ball, made clever use of possession and most importantly, worked tirelessly for each other.

You could see it in the last score as they calmly moved the ball into a position and to a player, Declan O'Sullivan, who had the ability and time to close out the game.

Colm Cooper orchestrated the whole passage of play. That is the influence of Pat O'Shea on this team. You could see his basketball background coming to the fore, allied to a intelligent football brain. The right options were taken at the right time. That's Kerry football in a nutshell.

They hit the ground running at the start of both halves to catch the Dubs out for a number of avoidable scores. Considering it was Dublin's sixth match in Croke Park this season, I found it strange they needed time to adjust to the intensity of the occasion.

It proved very costly as they simply couldn't make up the ground lost during these vital periods.

The other key contribution on the day was O'Sullivan's goal. The Kerry captain is now leading contender for footballer of the year after a great championship. His finish was near perfection, and it had to be to beat Stephen Cluxton. Paul Casey struggled to contain him.

Tactically, Kerry got it spot on. Moving Kieran Donaghy out the field was similar to what Cork did with Michael Cussen against Meath. It meant his aerial ability could be utilised in different areas of the pitch. Basically, wherever it was needed.

More importantly, though, it freed up room for Cooper and Bryan Sheehan. Gooch is unmarkable when quick ball is going into him as he has the ability to turn on to either foot.

I'm surprised Ross McConnell was not left inside to act as an extra defender and perhaps curb this obvious threat and the onrushing Kerry forwards through the middle. He made little impact.

Both Brogan brothers performed well on the Ó Sé brothers, but they continue to take too much out of the ball, to the detriment of the team. This never happens with Kerry forwards like Cooper or Donaghy whose first instinct is to move the ball to a better positioned team-mate.

Conal Keaney also provided a consistently reliable target, but the other four Dublin forwards on display were way below the level required to beat All-Ireland champions.

The result also came down to Dublin's one clear goal chance. Ray Cosgrove could not possibly be playing with high confidence levels considering his lack of game-time. There was a time when he would have calmly buried that opportunity.

The first half was a stop-start affair due to the amount of niggle off the ball. Considering the stakes, this was understandable, but the second half was outstanding and the referee allowed matters to flow.

Ciarán Whelan is so important to Dublin, but it took until midway through the second half before he, along with Bryan Cullen and Shane Ryan, began to make a genuine impact. If they had maintained this burst of excellence, or began earlier, they could have won.

The loss of Darragh Ó Sé was not capitalised upon either. Tommy Griffin deserves credit for overshadowing Whelan to such an extent that Darragh's return looked like a mistake. He was carrying a leg. Kerry got away with it.

The impact subs worked for Kerry. Seán and Darren O'Sullivan have straightforward briefs - use their pace to cause havoc. It's a huge advantage to be able to introduce such quality.

The use of both feet, heads-up football and balance shown by Kerry footballers is bred into them from under-10s. The primary lesson is teamwork. You could see it in Donaghy when he won ball and immediately delivered it off to someone better off.

Dublin are close. It is important they stick together now as they have a good backroom team that would be difficult to replace. The graph has definitely risen this year, but they must unearth a stronger panel. A manager needs to have 24 players he is willing to use.

They could do with finding a few more Brogans, while Mark Vaughan's outfield play needs to improve and I believe it will. Jason Sherlock has given a lot to Dublin football. Football is in the brain but when the legs no longer respond maybe it is time to take stock. Whelan should definitely stay on for one more campaign.