O'Tooles awake from their slumber

The Dublin hurling manager, Michael O'Grady, occasionally protests that there is more to his team than just his two Kilkenny stars. O'Tooles may probably say the same - but the combination of Eamonn Morrissey and James Brennan was undoubtedly the biggest reason why they retained their senior county title at Parnell Park yesterday.

Between them they scored 2-5, Morrissey plundering both goals and Brennan pulling the strings from midfield. St Vincent's had no one to compare. In fact, neither did O'Tooles. The champions may find their dependence on both players a liability in Leinster, but it didn't matter against a Vincent's team that lost their way in a lamentable second half performance.

They had, however, controlled most of the first half possession while O'Tooles slumbered, but they failed to build a decent lead against the inevitable backlash. Eight wides and several shots dropped short into the comfortable hands of goalkeeper Brendan McLoughlin meant they led by just three points with five minutes left in the half.

Morrissey, who, at full forward, had been a virtual spectator until then, came drifting outfield in search of possession. A low clearance down the right wing found him and suddenly he was off, rounding his man, pulling away and cutting in from the right before crashing his shot home - referee Moloney ignored his overcarrying of the ball.

Unfortunately, it was not the only thing he ignored, and some wild pulls threatened to ignite a couple of flare-ups. The worst came in the fifth minute of injury time when the Vincent's half back, Emmett McGrane, pulled late on O'Tooles captain Aidan Mulligan, who promptly retaliated with a headbutt. The ensuing flare-up was contained - just about - but Mulligan's reaction deserved the line. Five minutes later he was lifting the cup.

Morrissey's goal left O'Tooles in front at the break, 1-4 to 0-6. A drab first half, it got worse for the crowd of about 5,000 in the second as O'Tooles simply pulled away.

Morrissey, within four minutes, had notched up a further 1-1, intelligently reading a poor defensive clearance before intercepting it and firing over. Too easy. Likewise, his second goal, fed cleverly by wing forward Kevin Flynn but unmarked and unhurried as he shot from his left side: goalkeeper Eamonn Burke got his bos to the ball but was beaten by power. Morrissey was quiet between goals, though his contribution was augmented by the hardworking Michael Healy at right half forward.

The St Vincent's attack still had a decent supply of ball in the second half, thanks largely to the diligent Shane Dalton in midfield, but they were repeatedly closed down by an O'Tooles defence that tackled in numbers. The losers' lack of penetration was epitomised by their full forward line, all of whom were eventually replaced. Two points was the team's entire return for the second half, one of these from substitute Terry Jennings who made an impact after his arrival in the 34th minute.

Trailing by seven points with 10 minutes left, they had a chance when corner forward Sean McDermott was hauled down in the square by his marker, Paul Gettings. Centre forward Colin Fetherston stepped up, but he had come into the game distracted by an injured calf muscle which was heavily strapped. Three bad first half wides further undermined his confidence, and his weak shot was easily gathered and cleared.

Wing forward Tomas McGrane was impressive from placed balls and completed the Vincent's scoring with an impeccable sideline cut in the 61st minute. It was, however, a mere statistic by then.