KILLINAN END - Dublin re-enforce their greatness

There was something distinctly old style about the All-Ireland football. Possession was up for dispute quite often. We were spared long semi-probing periods of possession where little was happening. Players in possession were actually under threat and did not have undue time on the ball. The relatively helter-skelter nature was a throwback to some of the 1970s games, with constant risk of a ‘turnover’. This aspect was probably enhanced by the slippery conditions. But the sheer intensity and uncertainty all amounted to a good final.

Given the nature, tradition, and expectation of Kerry football, it is a given that they will consider any final loss an opportunity missed. Winter nightmares will recall the nonchalance of Gavin White when a routine pass was botched. This was the ultimate turnover. A game-changer. A defining moment.

Though the Kingdom recovered well initially and scored the next three points, the last 25 minutes saw them outscored 0-7 to 0-2. As Tomás Ó Sé observed at the end – “there's the game”. It wasn't really more complicated than that. There is much talk these days of the third quarter in this final it was in the last quarter that Kerry were overcome.

A lot was made of the eclipse of David Clifford. No doubt Mick Fitzsimons played a pivotal role. However, by the standards of mere mortals Clifford had quite a decent match. He kicked two points from play and gave an exquisite pass which led to Paul Geaney's goal. The Kingdom were always going to meet this day somewhere along the winding road. Some team was going to ratchet up the intensity and pace to make the deployment of the Clifford threat trickier. His getting just one touch of the ball in the first 23 minutes of the game was ominous for Kerry. The broader system of Dublin play, their ability to contest and hold possession, meant that the normal supply lines were under stress.

Even when Clifford got ball it was quite often in a position which made generating a score difficult. Some of the shots he took on where what are often called low percentage options. Shots which more often than not were unlikely to be scored. This was a function of a well-organised defence and not just Mick Fitzsimons. A blueprint perhaps for many counties when faced with the threat of David Clifford. Not many will execute this well, but we are not yet in the space where Clifford has to be Footballer of the Year in perpetuity.

Some commentary on Monday referenced the number of close games Kerry have lost over the last couple of decades in Croke Park. The implied message was that Kerry somehow lacked the bottle in really tight games. Certainly, there's plenty of evidence of Kerry losing big games by narrow margins. Armagh 2002, Tyrone four times, Dublin 2011, 2015, and again yesterday. Even a now largely forgotten 2017 semi-final replay to Mayo. It is true to say also that when Kerry have won, they've often tended to win well.

However, Kerry came off the ropes in the 2014 semi-final against Mayo and squeezed out a win in a tight final the same year against Donegall. They also came through in a tense finish with Dublin in the 2022 semi-final. It is likely that Kerry’s tendency to lose in tight matches is in fact attributable to their competitiveness. They tend to be beaten only by small margins.

Conversely, they often demonstrate the ability to inflict pain on opponents when they themselves get on top. Across the grand sweep of Kerry football there have been few occasions where they've been subjected to serious beatings. In between the success of 1969-70 and the famous young team of 1975 they were tortured by Cork. The All-Ireland semi-final of 2001 against Meath is another rare example of a serious beating. The All-Ireland final replays of 1972 and 2019 when Kerry lost would have enabled a few early leavers to beat the traffic as well, but bear in mind that Kerry did well enough to take both games to replays. Suggesting that they somehow lack the stomach regularly in tense tight games is hardly supported by the county's record at All-Ireland level.

This was Dublin’s day, however. Three men won their ninth medal. Men who never knew a bad day? Not quite. Stephen Cluxton won his first All-Ireland medal just three months shy of his 30th birthday. Defeat in the Dublin jersey was a more frequent visitor as the twilight of his career beckoned. His achievement is an extraordinary confluence of excellence, determination, and luck. To kick two points at 41 years of age in an All-Ireland final is an achievement which will probably be appreciated only in time to come, when those who were not around to see it dismiss it as impossible.

It is to be expected that several Dublin players will bow out in the coming months. But only eight of the Dublin starting team on Sunday started the against Tyrone five years ago. In many respects the age profile of the team should not worry Dublin. Replacing some of the greatest of their generation with players of similar character and ability is of course another matter.