After 16 years ‘Boys in Blue’ triumphant in All-Ireland Final thriller against Kerry
Dublin finally ended a harrowing 16-year wait for their loyal fans when they overcame Kerry by the narrowest of margins to win the All-Ireland senior football final at Croke Park on 18 September.
There were many heroes to choose from that afternoon, but it was the Dubs’ goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton who came forward to take a stoppage time free-kick which sailed straight and high between the posts, giving his side a lead they would not relinquish before the final whistle.
It is Dublin’s first success over their Munster rivals since beating The Kingdom in the All-Ireland semi-final back in 1977 before going on to easily overcome Armagh in the final.
Since then they have crossed swords on eight occasions before this year, with each outcome being a Kerry win.
The 1970s still remain the glory days of Dublin football, when they set a record by becoming the first county to contest six All-Ireland finals in a row, winning three against Galway (1974), Kerry (1976) and Armagh (1977) and losing three to Kerry (1975, 1978, 1979). Kerry subsequently matched this feat during the last decade.
The Metropolitans only managed to win the Sam Maguire Cup twice in the interim when they beat Galway in 1983 and Tyrone in 1995. They contested four other finals but failed twice against their old foes Kerry (in 1984 and 1985) and twice to Ulster opposition: Donegal in 1992 and Down two years later.
The Jackeens will be hoping there’s no repeat of form after their last All-Ireland triumph. Dublin went seven years without winning a Leinster Championship before beating Kildare in the final in 2002.
The current championship format, commonly referred to by fans as the ‘Backdoor System’, was introduced the previous year, whereby a county can get knocked out of their respective provincial title race and re-routed through a qualifier draw. This system has worked well by giving teams – especially so-called weaker counties – more playing time during the summer.
Although the system has worked very well for the GAA and fans in terms of revenue and excitement, there is evidence to suggest it has not suited every county, and Dublin may fall into this category.
The Dubs have dominated the Leinster Football Championship since 2005, winning six titles in seven years, their only blemish being a heavy defeat to Meath in last year’s semi-final. During this period they suffered defeat on three occasions at the quarter-final stage.
In previous years this dominance in Leinster would have led them to five straight All-Ireland semi-finals, thus having just one county standing in the way of an All-Ireland final appearance.
Meanwhile, St Vincent’s clubman Pat Gilroy has kept the Hill 16 faithful guessing as to whether he will be in charge next year as Dublin go in search of a 24th All-Ireland title.
During a celebratory appearance with the squad on RTÉ One’s The Late Late Show, he revealed he had not yet made a decision on his position and would need to speak with family, friends and work colleagues before deciding what his future would be.
