KINGDOM INFLICT SECOND LEAGUE DEFEAT ON GAVIN’S DUBLIN

Defender hits the winner as the Dubs are floored again

NO fear of Dublin printing the fivein-a-row t-shirts just yet.

Jayo is back – had he ever been away? – but the presence of the selector and forwards coach in the Tralee ground wasn’t enough to stave off a second defeat in the opening three games of the Allianz Football League.

Hailed as the litmus test for Peter Keane and his emerging, young Kerry team, they passed it – just. With Sean O’Shea an inspired presence at centre-forward and Dara Moynihan pushing him hard in terms of the Man of the Match award with a silky, elusive display on the wing, Kerry looked to have a rollicking game under wraps when deservedly leading by four with time almost up. But this Dublin team aren’t chasing history for no reason, digging deep into their reserves of character to test the hosts’ nerve by hitting four points in a row – and with 14 men too, following the double yellow card to Michael Fitzsimons.

Now under siege, a thoroughly entertaining affair that showcased so much that is good about the game ended with Kerry defender Peter Crowley stealing forward to fist the winner.

It was hard to figure out why a scuffle broke out on the pitch on the final whistle given the spirit the game was played in.

Adrian Spillane picked up the first yellow card of the night with a clumsy high challenge on John Small but the football was fast and open.

Jack Sherwood bombed forward in the opening minutes to illustrate Kerry’s intent and Tom O’Sullivan showed the quality of Kerry’s emerging young talent with a cracking score of his own, Moynihan also got in on the act by cutting the ball stylishly over the bar.

While listed at full-forward, Gavin O’Brien dropped out to wing-forward as Diarmuid O’Connor worked across the middle third, giving Kerry solidity without the ball.

In the absence of Stephen Cluxton, Evan Comerford was under pressure. He flapped a high ball into the square with Paul Geaney lurking and was blown up for one kick-out that didn’t go the requisite 13-metre distance. James McCarthy could only get a hand to a misplaced handpass but chipped the ball over the bar on the run with a lovely, impromptu piece of skill to leave Dublin trailing 0-6 to 0-5. Then Kerry struck for goal. A sweet outside-of-the-boot delivery from Moynihan hung invitingly on the edge of the square. Comerford hesitated, opting to stay close to his line and was powerless then when the ball broke off O’Connor into the path of Stephen O’Brien who flykicked it to the back of the net.

And yet still, Dublin pounced for two goals of their own, Con O’Callaghan responding in kind by unleashing a thunderous kick that deflected off Brian Ó Beaglaoich. Kerry kicked on with a run of three unanswered points before the same Kerry defender then was skinned by Paul Mannion in the corner, the attacker tucking a low shot away to keep Dublin in touch at the break, Kerry leading 1-11 to 2-6.

Darren Gavin swung over a point from distance on the restart before Kerry hit another purple patch of four successive points. Two of those came from the peerless deadball skills of O’Shea who was a bundle of energy and invention. Kerry’s press on Comerford continued to pay dividends, a turnover completing the run of scoring with substitute Tommy Walsh firing over.

Dublin needed a show of leadership and got it from a familiar

THE footage on eir Sport of Jason Sherlock stepping off the Dublin team bus as it pulled up at Austin Stack Park in Tralee spiked the story of the week that the selector and forwards coach had departed the management team of the All-Ireland champions.

Conspicuous by his absence as the regular on-pitch runner for Dublin’s two Allianz League games to date, Sherlock (right) was front and centre last night, all eyes in the ground tracking his appearance from the tunnel at 6:35pm, 25 minutes before throw-in.

Jim Gavin insisted he was never gone from the management team.

‘Not in the least, no. Not in the slightest,’said the Dublin boss.

And Gavin had no issue with him doing an RTÉ documentary late last year? ‘I thought it was excellent documentary. If you haven’t seen it, I’d highly recommend it.’

He also dismissed the story that Diarmuid Connolly, who quit the panel last year, was in one-on-one training with Bryan Cullen with a view to a Dublin return. ‘I can confirm that is certainly clearly not the case.

‘If any player wants to volunteer their time for inter-county football, we’ll always look at them. The door has always remained open for any player who either has been with us in the past or who wants to join us.’