The dust is still settling on what was a truly great day for football.
There was much about Kerry and Dublin that reflected the very best of the sport and it was the main talking point across Ireland on Sunday night. A classic, was the verdict. Absolutely, if you are from Kerry. And yes, for all neutrals. But for Dublin? It was horrible.
Losing like that leaves them in a hollow space for a few weeks. But if they use that space and time wisely, those same few weeks might become more valuable than all the hours of training and preparation they will go through next season. They need to clear their minds and think about the year ahead.
It was a privilege to be in Croke Park. We were behind the goals in the Nally Stand and just drinking in the atmosphere in those seconds before the throw-in. And we watched three Kerry defenders came in to shake hands and simultaneously grab the Dublin forwards by the collar of the jersey. They wouldn’t let go. Particularly Brian Ó Beaglaoich on Ciarán Kilkenny. It was a message; the old compliant, nice Kerry is gone. And it set a tone.
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I sensed that this caught Dublin off guard. The game took off at such a hectic level, then, that it exceeded the hype and hope. It was thrilling. Old patterns emerged – Kerry’s early goal, a James McCarthy marauding run, David Clifford hitting scores that had to be witnessed live to be fully believed.
My favourite score of his was the flick back from Seán O’Shea when he looked left and then jinked on to his right, just for the speed and fluidity of his movement. He was imperious.
And he had good company in O’Shea. Here was the day the Kerry elders had dreamed of. The boy wonders performed as leaders of the highest order. They looked ready. They were not Kerry’s golden kids any more. They stood up. And they triumphed in a way that came straight from the Kerry book of football fairytales.
So where did the day leave Dublin? Exiting the stadium, I felt there was no reason to push any panic buttons. Yes, they trailed by six points in the second half. And yes, it could have been worse if O’Shea had converted the penalty chance for Kerry.
But in the second half, the Dublin collective ground Kerry down and started to get turnovers even before then. They mixed up their attack. And they fought their way into contention.
Paddy Small had a vital impact, Cormac Costello’s goal was incredible because he had just one corner of the goal to aim at and he found it. And then McCarthy was operating at a heightened level. Has he ever been better? He was smashing breaking ball, piling pressure on the kick-out and then that point he scored in the second half was a sea change.
He followed up with another towering break at midfield and Kilkenny kicks the score and you could feel the energy – the belief – surging through the Dublin fans in the stadium. It was awesome.
Mick Fitzsimons was on the ropes in the first half against Clifford. Who wouldn’t have been? But! He slowly got to grips with him as the game went on. And Small began to slow the influence of O’Shea. And all of a sudden, the contest came into sharper focus. The apparition of Kerry pulling away proved just that. There were a few minutes when it seemed as if another nightmare was unfolding for them.
And you had to view this game in the context of the Dublin players who were not there. All season, we had been talking about how Dublin had changed their emphasis and were returning to a more expansive style. But without Con O’Callaghan, they were not able to execute that as they would have wished.
The dynamic runs were not as evident in his absence. When Small came in, he delivered that. Could he have been brought in earlier given the blunted aspect of the Dublin attack? He had pace and energy and ball-winning ability and he quickly became the point of the Dublin attack – which is Con’s natural role.
I felt Lee Gannon had a very good game and Tom Lahiff, also, in the middle of the park. These are all good things for Dublin. But it doesn’t take away from the fact that this week hurts.
It is important they allow perspective to come in before they make any decisions about their future. Do their veteran guys decide to leave quietly, or do they circle the wagon and go again? If they all return, I don’t think they will be that far away.
These past few days will have been miserable and filled with searing regret – little fragments from the game returning to them. You don’t want to go anywhere or see anyone or hear anything. You don’t want to engage in life. You just want time to pass so you can get a bit of distance. So even the hurling final this weekend will help as it puts a block between them and that defeat. Conversation will move on to something else.
What a strange, new sensation all of this is for Brian Fenton. He is one of the great midfielders and he put in towering performance last Sunday. He had not lost a game for six years and now has been knocked out for two years in a row.
And how frustrating for O’Callaghan to sit there helpless. But club games this weekend will coax these players out. The clouds will linger longer for the manager. You are racked with thoughts and doubts and sooner or later you have to revisit the game and figure out what you could have done differently.
I was looking at the programme before the match. To me, the forward lines are inseparable in terms of quality. But without Con, the picture changed. His absence was just very bad luck. However, Paul Mannion came to my mind. Where was he on Sunday? In Boston, playing with Donegal. And when I was watching the highlights during the week, an advert came up with Paul in a car saying how you can’t replicate the feeling of competing.
Paul and Jack McCaffrey left Dublin at the peak of their playing powers. And there is a consensus that it maybe became too easy for them. There was no cause any more. Well, the cause is there now. Dublin right now need these two players more than they have ever needed them. Playing is a choice. And, of course, we must respect that.
But I feel that the two boys should at least be approached to see if they might return. Sauntering to All-Irelands is one thing. But rescuing Dublin from the prospect of a Kerry dynasty is another challenge entirely. And maybe it is one which the two boys would find intriguing.
I feel it is not an exaggeration to say that these weeks can feel like a grieving for the losing team, particularly given Dublin’s record. But if the group can come together and see the way to the future and get everybody back, then those decisions can make them look to next season with reasons for optimism.
Kerry are in a different place now. If they win the All-Ireland final – and I believe Galway will have a significant say in this – then they will become much harder to beat. And they will be looking to atone for the years of oppression, as they would see it, under Dublin. They let the genie out of the bottle in 2011 and they will look to plug it again if they can.
Would Dublin have won if Con O’Callaghan was on the pitch? Arguably. What if a peak Paul Mannion was also there? The years when Dublin had an abundance of marquee forwards have passed. They need everyone now. It will be interesting what happens in the capital over the long and painful close season.
