ALL-IRELAND FEVER swept the capital again last night as Dublin slayed old enemy Kerry and booked their place in the football final.
A crowd of 81,553 packed into Croke Park for the first sell-out of the summer and witnessed a game for the ages as Dublin won by seven points, 3-18 to 3-11.
The sides were neck and neck until the 70th minute when Kevin McManamon struck to tip the balance back in Dublin’s favour and set up a showdown with Mayo on 22 September.
His looping strike was the decisive moment in a classic which got off to an explosive start when Kerry scored two goals in the opening 11 minutes and raced into an early five-point lead.
The gap between the sides was still four when Paul Galvin pointed in the 43rd minute but Dublin stuck to their task and from that point on outscored their opponents by 2-7 to 0-3.
“We’re under no illusions that the game could have went either way down the stretch so we’re happy with the victory,” manager Jim Gavin said as he praised his side for keeping cool heads under pressure.
Eoghan O’Gara celebrates at the final whistle (INPHO/Donall Farmer)
“[The final score] is probably not a fair reflection on the totality of the game but if we got a one-point victory today we would have also been happy.”
Kerry’s firepower came as no surprise to Gavin although the manner in which playmaker Colm Cooper was able to carve open his defence for the first of James O’Donoghue’s two goals and again for Donnchadh Walsh five minutes later is a priority he will want to address ahead of the final.
“We’ve obviously looked at their tapes and against Tipperary, Cork, Cavan, they did exactly the same so it was no surprise — not that one wants to go down three goals but it was no surprise that they got them.
They are the aristocrats of football and they have some fantastic forwards.
“Even up to half-time there was a fantastic since of calm among the players and a great focus and enthusiasm and energy to go hard at it in the second half.”
He added: “We look at the game over the full 70 minutes so whether you’re up or down at half-time, it doesn’t really matter. It’s when the final whistle is blown, that’s when you have to be ahead.
The team have shown great character, resolve, determination and a willingness never to quit. That was manifest.There were serious questions asked by Kerry and I think they answered most of them.
