By Cian O'Connell

Jim Gavin was satisfied with how Dublin responded in the closing stages of Sunday's dramatic draw against Galway at Pearse Stadium.

The point was enough to guarantee Dublin a place in the Allianz Football League Final against the Tribesmen, who are also unbeaten in the competition.

Four late scores in a row put Dublin ahead before Galway summoned a last gasp leveller courtesy of Johnny Heaney. "Probably the last maybe 15 minutes, you'd have to be satisfied," Gavin stated after the game. 

"I think it was probably our best play. But up to that we didn't really play to our standards. I think in the first half they might have got four scores from our turnovers – just hand-passing. 

"We'd consider ourselves trying to play a traditional brand of football, and catching and kicking and hand-passing would be very much part of that skill-set. So that really let us down, particularly in the first half. 

"But I think our boys, above all, showed great mental strength and resolve in that game. When it did look like it was going away from them, they stuck at it; hit a few wides that again you wouldn't be particularly happy about. But, you know, they kept at it. 

"Even to go ahead by a point was a fantastic achievement, and we'll leave Galway with a lot to reflect upon going into the Monaghan game." 

Dublin encountered some difficulty with Galway's solid defensive system. "I thought we were penetrating them in the first half, we just weren't taking the scores," was Gavin's assessment. 

"Listen, when a team plays, of our 14 outfield players, with 13 players behind the ball, for any team it's going to be a challenge. But I thought our boys embraced that challenge and responded to it well.  

"Galway didn't change their system in the second half; if anything it got a bit more tight down there. They compressed the space. But I thought our guys responded real well to that. It's just our hand-passing and kick-passing - that needs to certainly improve going into Monaghan."