David Moran (Kerry) v Eoin Murchan (Dublin)
THIS brief battle decided the two-part war. The ball was thrown in for the second half and Moran, although he couldn’t have known it at the time, could have caught it unchallenged. But he chose to punch into the Dublin half and baby-faced Murchan scooped up the ball and set off towards the Kerry posts. Bryan Fenton got himself in the way of Murchan’s pursuers so it was left to Moran, no slouch in the speed stakes himself, to give chase. He caught him but chose not to take the Dublin half-back down and, with the Dublin forwards pulling wide and none of the Kerry defenders prepared to come in to stop him, Murchan picked his spot past Shane Ryan. A superb score straight off the training ground.
Top score
DIARMUID Connolly was introduced at half-time on Saturday and the richly-talented St Vincent’s forward produced one jaw-dropping moment of skill in the second half. Kerry, behind after Murchan’s goal, broke from their own half but Connolly nipped in to turn the ball over. With the ball in his hands he spotted Ciaran Kilkenny’s run and kicked a defence-splitting eye-of-a-needle pass to his team-mate that sent him through. Kilkenny split the posts at the Canal End and Dublin rarely looked back.
