HOW THEY RATED
MAYO
DAVID CLARKE 7
He could do nothing about Dublin’s goals, but his kick-outs were excellent and defied Dublin’s press time and again.
CHRIS BARRETT 6
Part of an inside line that was under severe stress, however he was generally rock solid.
OISÍN MULLIN 7
An outstanding talent, his future looks to be further out the field. Excellent going forward, less assured when in defence.
LEE KEEGAN 6
It was no surprise to see him mark Kilkenny, and no surprise to see Kilkenny keep him close to goal.
PADDY DURCAN 6
Mayo’s reliance on him in attack has lessened, but a big blow when he didn’t reappear after half-time.
STEPHEN COEN 6
A superb athlete, he tracked Niall Scully and competed for secondary possession in midfield.
EOGHAN McLAUGHLIN 6
His forays into attack were greatly reduced here, but he coped amid the blizzard of Dublin runners.
CONOR LOFTUS 8
Moving a forward to midfield made sense in Croker’s expanses as his passing was excellent.
MATTHEW RUANE 7 A
big performance as Mayo sent Dublin’s midfield into retreat. Sloppy in possession occasionally.
KEVIN McLOUGHLIN 7
He is a veteran and he consistently shows up on big days. Summed up Mayo’s fearless attitude to an impossible task.
RYAN O’DONOGHUE 8
Stripped twice in the tackle but it didn’t knock a stir out of him. Hard-working and able to score.
DIARMUID O’CONNOR 8
Brilliant display. In Dublin faces, he matched attitude with tireless effort and some classy link-play.
TOMMY CONROY 6
It was a hard evening for him. He has been a bright spot of Mayo’s season but this was unforgiving.
AIDAN O’SHEA 6
Not as dominant as Mayo needed or Dublin might have feared. Stayed mostly around the full-forward line but too marginal.
CILLIAN O’CONNOR 8
Excellent for the second time in a final against Dublin. Kicked his frees, claimed marks, never took a step back.
SUBSTITUTES
Michael Plunkett 6, James Carr 6, Darren Coen 6, Jordan Flynn 6, James Durcan 6.
DUBLIN
STEPHEN CLUXTON 6
Struggled to find his receivers in the first half but improved as the game went on.
MICHAEL FITZSIMONS 7
Should have been cautioned for a frontal hit on Lee Keegan but, overall, was very solid
DAVID BYRNE 5
Had a difficult opening half when he was left isolated on Cillian O’Connor and gave up two converted marks.
JONNY COOPER 6
Started on Aidan O’Shea and his aggressiveness cost him a yellow card, after which he was benched.
EOIN MURCHAN 7
Started on Tommy Conroy but was moved to curb the influence of Ryan O’Donoghue, which he did.
JOHN SMALL 8
Early difficulties on O’Donoghue but he also came up with a couple of huge turnovers, a solid display.
ROBBIE McDAID 6
Set up Sean Bugler for a point, but a black card on the stroke of halftime was a blemish on his display.
BRIAN FENTON 8
His influence became more pronounced in the second half, giving Dublin the ball-winning platform in the middle.
JAMES McCARTHY 8
Carried the fight right from the start when setting up the opening goal for Dean Rock.
NIALL SCULLY 8
An unsung hero who put in a huge shift, kicked a point, fouled for another and had a goal assist.
CIARÁN KILKENNY 9
Ran the show in the second half, scoring three points, surely a frontrunner for player of the year.
SEAN BUGLER 6
In truth, was on the margins before making way for Brian Howard at half-time.
PADDY SMALL 5
Looked over-anxious at times, exemplified by one rushed kick at the posts.
CON O’CALLAGHAN 8
Proved to be a thorn in Mayo’s side, coming up with a couple of big possessions off Cluxton’s kickouts and scored a quality goal.
DEAN ROCK 7
So dependable – and it took just 14 seconds for him to deliver here with the game’s opening goal.
SUBSTITUTES
Brian Howard 8, Paul Mannion 6, Colm Basquel 6, Cormac Costello, Philly McMahon not on long enough to be rated.