SFC Qualifiers Round Two/Dublin 1-13 Leitrim 0-4: When it was over, the visitors in the pale blue jerseys milled around Carrick town and sat on walls overlooking the fast-flowing Shannon. If nothing else this summer, the most famous fans in the country are going to have some picturesque snaps for the football album.
Dublin left the heartland with a win that confirmed several of the old concerns but also raised a glimmer of optimism for the city team. Dublin weren't great in this match but a sodden Saturday in Leitrim is neither the time nor place for looking fancy. They simply navigated their way through a match that was pitifully devoid of threat.
"Yeah, by Jesus, we are satisfied," said Tommy Lyons later. "I mean, it wasn't pretty but it was about coming down here and winning. We knew Leitrim were going to get stuck into us in a big way but when we got our heads around it, we dug in and got a result. And some issues we got right out there today - others we will have to look at again. But the main thing is we're back in the hat."
On paper, the tie seemed attractive; it had all the classic connotations of what the English like to refer to as "the romance of the cup". Certainly, it was the only sporting fixture around that commanded the presence of an international statesman. With his folksy lack of ceremony, Bertie Ahern stood among the people and enjoyed piping-hot tea and buns in the back kitchen of Páirc Seán Mac Diarmada.
At one stage, Lyons looked up from his place on the sideline to the rain-drenched window where An Taoiseach stood. If there was a moment of empathy between the two leaders of men, it was their secret. Bertie remained inscrutable. It is one thing solving the issues of the day at the G8 summit but quite another trying to figure out the Dublin midfield.
The good news for Dublin was fairly clear-cut. Bryan Cullen cut a dash at centre-half back. Ian Robertson played and lived to tell the tale. The injury-wracked Ballymun man was good, too, muscular and direct in the only truly robust section of the pitch. If he can stay fit, it is hard not see him figuring if Dublin make it back to the big time.
Jason Sherlock, Alan Brogan and (more fitfully) Senan Connell demonstrated enough speed and smarts to suggest they can trouble better defences than Leitrim's - and Leitrim's back six were pretty good. Des Farrell will always be good for a point. Full backs don't come any better than Paddy Christie. There were moments when Ciarán Whelan looked the best footballer in the country.
But: Cullen thrived among a half-forward line that simply was not there. The old quandary of where to play Robertson appears to be alive and well. Jayo and company only really sparked when the game was already won. Full back was never Dublin's problem. And there are always moments when Ciarán Whelan looks the best in the country.
In short, Lyons's championship team remains something of a melting pot. But through the driving rain and general awfulness of the game in Leitrim yesterday, it was possible to envisage something potentially spicy in the making.
From the nadir of a 0-3 to 0-2 deficit after 20 minutes with the greasy ball making a mockery of normally deft hands, Dublin righted themselves in a business-like fashion. Brogan's fine point on 44 minutes probably broke the game: it left Leitrim 0-8 to 0-3 in arrears and clean out of ideas.
Five minutes later, Cullen sauntered up with the ball, took a return pass from Connell and curled another lovely score.
When Whelan cropped up at the end of a movement involving Darren McGee and Robertson to win a penalty, Dublin looked confident and settled. Leitrim goalkeeper Gareth Phelan got a great touch to Brogan's strike but in the last minute of the game, Connell tapped home the goal the visiting team had been threatening.
The game was a contest in the first half largely because of a gallant defensive effort by Leitrim. Players like Séamus Quinn, Pádraic Flynn, Colin Regan and Noel Doonan were loyal and brave deckhands on a slowly sinking ship. The lack of punch in the forward line was evident from the beginning and was most cruelly exposed during the 40-minute scoreless spell they endured when Dublin moved out of sight.
It was a fairly bleak close to the season for Leitrim, who also lost a fine manager afterwards. In his last game at the helm, Declan Rowley put out a team that was fit, motivated, organised and willing but simply did not possess enough fire-power. It was frustrating for the home team because at times Doonan and Chris Carroll posed worrying questions for the Dublin midfield sector, with the McGees, Whelan and eventually Robertson all contending. It is at those moments when Dublin's big hitters seem to abdicate responsibility that the team looks very ordinary.
The other notable bugbear for their more pessimistic fans was the hesitancy over free-kicking. Tomás Quinn landed two in the first half but he and Connell also missed fairly standard opportunities. If Dublin make it back to Croke Park, they better expect a lot of teams to hand them free-kicking chances from out around the 40-metre line.
What Dublin require now is another relatively straightforward assignment in the provinces. They still have to convince the public about their All-Ireland capabilities but that is a task for later on. Their nationwide tour has a feel of atonement about it and by ironing out their creases in smaller parks, Dublin may cause a bit of a surprise if and when they return from the wilderness to the bosom of the Hill.
DUBLIN: S Cluxton; B Cahill, P Christie, C Goggins; P Casey (0-1), B Cullen (0-1), P Griffin; J McGee, D McGee; D Lally, C Whelan. S Connell (1-2); A Brogan (0-3), J Sherlock (0-2), T Quinn (0-3, two frees). Subs: I Robertson for Lally (15 mins); D Farrell (0-1) for T Quinn (53 mins); R Cosgrove for J Sherlock (63); D O'Mahony for D McGee (68); S Ryan for J McGee (70).
LEITRIM: G Phelan; D Reynolds, S Quinn, M McGuinness; N Gilbane, P Flynn, C Regan; N Doonan, C Carroll; J Glancy, J Guckian, B Prior (0-1); J McGuiness, P Farrell, M Foley (0-2, frees). Subs: F McBrien (0-1, free), for J McGuinness (24 mins); S Canning for for P Farrell (40); P McGuinness for J Clancy (55); D Gilhooley for M Foley (57).
Referee: B Crowe (Cavan).
