Preview: All-Ireland SFC semi-final - Dublin v Kerry
Diarmuid O'Connor of Kerry in action against Con O'Callaghan of Dublin during the 2023 GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship final match between Dublin and Kerry at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile.
Sunday, July 12
All-Ireland SFC semi-final
Dublin v Kerry, Croke Park, 4pm - RTÉ / BBC NI
Kerry and Dublin have a long and glorious history of drawing the best from one another and there’s every reason to expect they’ll do the same again on Sunday.
Both have named unchanged teams from their quarter-final wins. The only injury doubt was Dublin’s Sean MacMahon who has been nursing what team manager Ger Brennan has described as ‘a nick in the hammer’, and his inclusion is a big boost for the Leinster side.
He was the man detailed to mark David Clifford when the teams met in the League and he did a better job than arguably anyone else has this year as he held the best forward in the country to just three points from play.
His preparation for this match has been curtailed somewhat though by that hamstring strain which isn’t ideal from a Dublin point of view, because you’d very much like to be in the pink of your health if your job is to man-mark David Clifford.
It’s reductive to frame this match as being defined by how well a new-look Dublin defence will be able to contain a very proven Kerry attack, but it is an obvious lens to view this game through nevertheless.
Dublin looked very vulnerable defensively when losing successive championship matches to Westmeath in the Leinster Final and Louth in the first round of the All-Ireland SFC and have tightened things up a lot since then, but this is the biggest test they’ll have faced all year by a significant margin.
David Clifford and Dylan Geaney are both in Footballer of the Year form, Paul Geaney is a great foil for both of them in the full-forward line, and in the half-forward line the guile of Paudie Clifford is nicely complemented by the power of Joe O’Connor and Diarmuid O’Connor.
Can a Dublin defence with inexperienced players like Eoin Kennedy, Theo Clancy, and Charlie McMorrow come out on top in that battle? Only, you would imagine, if Dublin can dominate both their own and Kerry’s kick-outs.
That won’t be easily done against a Kerry team that only lost three of their own kick-outs against Tyrone, but Dublin’s zonal high press might have more success than Tyrone’s man to man approach.
Dublin’s retention of the ball off their own kick-outs has improved over the course of the campaign, but it will have to hit new heights in this game and it’ll be worth the admission price alone to watch Peadar Ó Cofaigh Byrne and Brian Howard duke it out in a heavyweight midfield clash with Mark O’Shea and Sean O’Brien.
If Dublin can come out on top here they certainly have the firepower to beat Kerry. The Tyrone attack really tested Kerry’s defence in the quarter-final and a very experienced Dublin forward sextet has more quality than the Ulster side does.
Con O’Callaghan, Niall Scully, Ciarán Kilkenny, Cormac Costello, Paddy Small, and Colm Basquel are all footballers in a rich vein of form and will do damage if they get a good supply of ball.
If it turns out to be a match of fine margins that’s decided by the respective impacts of both benches, then Kerry could have an edge here.
Seán O’Shea, Keith Evans, Tony Brosnan, Micheal Burns and Tomás Kennedy all offer quality and variety in attack, and Armin Heinrich, Brian Ó Beaglaoich, and Tom O’Sullivan are proven defensive options.
Dublin don’t have anything like the same experience held in reserve, and that could ultimately be a decisive factor.
KERRY: Shane Murphy; Paul Murphy, Jason Foley, Dylan Casey; Graham O’Sullivan, Mike Breen, Gavin White; Mark O’Shea, Sean O’Brien; Joe O’Connor, Paudie Clifford, Diarmuid O’Connor; David Clifford, Paul Geaney, Dylan Geaney. Subs: Sean Broderick, Evan Looney, Tony Brosnan, Keith Evans, Sean O’Shea, Armin Heinrich, Brian Ó Beaglaoich, Tadhg Morley, Micheal Burns, Tom O’Sullivan, Tomás Kennedy. Stand By Players: Shane Ryan, Killian Spillane, Cillian Trant, Charlie Keating
DUBLIN: Evan Comerford; Sean MacMahon, Eoin Kennedy, David Byrne; Lee Gannon, Theo Clancy, Charlie McMorrow; Peadar Ó Cofaigh Byrne, Brian Howard; Colm Basquel, Con O’Callaghan, Niall Scully; Paddy Small, Ciaran Kilkenny, Cormac Costello. Subs: Hugh O’Sullivan, Tom Lahiff, Eoghan O’Callaghan, Cian Murphy, Seán Guiden, Josh Bannon, Ross McGarry, Alex Gavin, Seán Bugler, Tim Deering. Stand By Players: Eoin Murchan, Luke Breathnach, Jack Lundy, Greg McEneaney
