BERNARD BROGAN SCORED 1-10 as 14-man Dublin beat Mayo in a stirring Allianz National Football League Division 1 clash at Croke Park this evening.
The Sky Blues ran out 2-14 to 0-16 winners at GAA HQ in what was a repeat of last year’s All-Ireland semi-final between the sides.
There was drama aplenty in the second half as Dublin had defender Ger Brennan red-carded and goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton missed a penalty.
But inspired by ace forward Brogan, Dublin dug in and have now secured three wins from three outings in the top flight this year.
Brogan was in majestic form and the deadly corner forward’s 32nd minute goal separated the sides at half-time, as Dublin led by 1-8 to 0-8.
And Brogan also drew gasps of amazement in a crowd of 21,156 with a superb second half sideline.
But Brennan’s 41st-minute dismissal following a scuffle was a low moment in Dublin’s night and the 2011 All-Ireland SFC medallist could be looking at a lengthy ban.
In Division 2, Armagh beat Longford by 3-8 to 2-9 at the Athletic grounds. Francis McGee scored two goals for the Midlanders, who were 1-5 to 2-5 adrift at half-time. Jamie Clarke and Stefan Forker netted early goals for Armagh and Tony Kernan added a third in the second half.
Meanwhile, hosts Laois and Louth played out a pulsating draw. The sides couldn’t be separated at half-time either as John O’Loughlin scored the only goal of the half for Laois. The sides were deadlocked at 1-6 to 0-9 at the midway point before Louth bagged second half goals from Andy McDonnell and Kevin Rogers. It finished 1-17 to 2-14 at O’Moore Park in Portlaoise.
In Division 3, Cavan travelled to Páirc Tailteann in Navan and came away with a 0-15 to 1-6 victory against Meath. Incredibly, Cavan led by 0-10 to 0-1 at half-time before Mickey Newman netted for Meath within 30 seconds of the restart. But Cavan, with Sigerson Cup medallist David Givney excellent at midfield, were fully deserving winners.
There was a draw in the night’s other Division 3 game between Antrim and Fermanagh, 2-9 to 1-12. Kevin Niblock netted in the first half for Antrim and the sides were also level at half-time, 1-2 to 0-5. Sean McVeigh goaled in the second half for Antrim, with Daryl Keenan on target for Fermanagh.
And in the night’s sole game in Division 4, Limerick scored a valuable 0-8 to 0-6 victory against hosts Waterford at Fraher Field, Dungarvan.
Reports to follow…
