The 2019 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final was the 132nd

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

of the

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) ( ga, Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premier competition in Gaelic football. An annual tournament organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), it is contested by the county ...

and the culmination of the 2019 tournament, the top level of competition in Gaelic football. Reigning All-Ireland champions

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

took on Munster champions

Kerry Kerry or Kerri may refer to: * Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name) Places * Kerry, Queensland, Australia * County Kerry, Ireland ** Kerry Airport, an international airport in Count ...

, with Dublin bidding to become the first

Gaelic Athletic Association The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sports, amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include t ...

(GAA) male team to win five consecutive editions of the competition. The last time a football team had this chance was in 1982; however, Kerry failed, their own winning streak being brought to an end by a last-minute goal. By coincidence, Kerry provided the opposition for Dublin on this occasion. The first game was played at Croke Park in

on 1 September 2019, featuring goals by

Jack McCaffrey Jack McCaffrey (born 19 October 1993) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for Clontarf. Early and personal life His father Noel also represented Dublin in football. McCaffrey attended Belvedere College private school and studied medicine at Univ ...

(top scorer from open play with 1–3) and

Killian Spillane Killian Spillane is a Gaelic footballer who plays for the Templenoe club and the Kerry county team. Killian Spillane is the son of Tom. His uncles Mick and Pat also played for Kerry, as has his brother Adrian. Inter-county Minor Spillane ...

and a

red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction. Red card may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers * Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or d ...

for

Jonny Cooper Jonathan "Jonny" Cooper (born 4 November 1989) is a dual player, who nowadays predominantly plays Gaelic footballer for the Na Fianna club and, formerly, for the Dublin county football team. Cooper played hurling at schoolboy and minor level. ...

. It finished in a draw, so a replay was held on 14 September. Dublin replaced M. D. MacAuley with Eoin Murchan for the replay, while RTÉ replaced Joe Brolly with Stephen Rochford. Murchan scored a goal straight from the second half throw-in as Dublin defeated Kerry by a scoreline of 1–18 to 0–15 in the replay to become the first male team to win five consecutive GAA All-Ireland titles. The game was televised nationally by

RTÉ2 RTÉ2 is an Television in the Republic of Ireland, Irish free-to-air television channel operated by public service broadcaster RTÉ. It was launched in 1978 as the Republic of Ireland's second television channel. History In the 1970s, the Iri ...

as part of ''

The Sunday Game ''The Sunday Game'' is RTÉ's main Gaelic games television programme. It is shown on RTÉ2 every Sunday during the Football Championship and Hurling Championship seasons. It is one of RTÉ2's longest-running shows, having been on air since 1 ...

'' live programme, presented by

Joanne Cantwell Joanne Cantwell (born 30 September 1979) is an Irish sports presenter. Personal life Cantwell was raised in Dublin, one of five daughters. She studied journalism at Dublin City University. Cantwell is married with two daughters and lives in O ...

(for the first time) from Croke Park, with studio analysis from

Joe Brolly Joe Brolly (born 25 June 1969 Dungiven, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland) is a Gaelic football analyst, former player and barrister who played at senior level for the Derry county team. Brolly played for Derry in the 1990s and early 2000s ...

Pat Spillane Patrick Gerard Spillane (born 1 December 1955), better known as Pat Spillane, is an Irish former Gaelic football pundit and player. His National Football League (Ireland), league and All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, championship career ...

, and

Ciarán Whelan Ciarán Whelan (born 28 February 1976 in Raheny, County Dublin) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for the Raheny club and, formerly, for the Dublin county team. He is right-footed but can kick with both feet and usually plays in midfield. He wa ...

. The play-by-play announcer was

Ger Canning Ger Canning is an Irish sports commentator with Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). Career Ger Canning was born in Cork on 10 May 1951. He was a secondary school teacher at South Presentation school in Cork City when he began his broadcasting c ...

, assisted by colour commentator

Kevin McStay Kevin McStay (born 9 May 1962) is an Irish Gaelic football Manager (Gaelic games), manager, commentator, analyst and former Gaelic football, player. He has been manager of the senior Mayo county football team, Mayo county team since 2022. McSta ...

. The game was also televised internationally by

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...

, presented by

Rachel Wyse Rachel Wyse (born 22 January 1985 in Dublin) is an Irish journalist, presenter, former Sky Sports News anchor and equestrian show jumper. Early life Rachel attended St Andrew's College, Dublin. Wyse graduated from the Institute of Art, Desi ...

and Brian Carney. On television, the drawn game received a 76.5% audience share. The replay received a 72.3% audience share.

Background

went into the final aiming for an unprecedented five-in-a-row of All-Ireland titles.

twice came close to a five-in-a-row, winning the All-Ireland in 1929–32 and losing the 1933 semi-final; and winning the All-Ireland in 1978–81 and losing the 1982 final. Kerry and Dublin had met in 13 previous All-Ireland finals, with Kerry winning eight of these and Dublin five. Between them, the two counties had won half of the All-Ireland championships played once the 2019 final was completed: Kerry having 37 wins (the last in 2014) and Dublin having 28 ahead of the 2019 final. Adding in 2019, this gave a total of 66, out of 132 years in which the

has been completed. Dublin were 1/5 in the betting

odds Odds provide a measure of the likelihood of a particular outcome. They are calculated as the ratio of the number of events that produce that outcome to the number that do not. Odds are commonly used in gambling and statistics. Odds also have ...

going into the first game, unprecedented odds against Kerry in an All-Ireland final. Pundits from outside the counties involved, such as Martin McHugh, tipped Dublin to win. This was also only the third championship replay between the teams since their rivalry began in 1892. Yet the other two were not All-Ireland finals, nor were they played at Croke Park, making 2019 the first such replay.

Paths to the final

Dublin

Leinster Championship

''Dublin won the Leinster Championship and so advanced directly to the quarter-final group stage.''

All-Ireland Quarter-Final Group Stage (Super 8)

''Dublin finished first in Group 2 and advanced to the All-Ireland semi-final.''

All-Ireland Semi-Final

Kerry

Munster Championship The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurlin ...

''Kerry won the Munster Championship and so advanced directly to the quarter-final group stage.''

All-Ireland Quarter-Final Group Stage (Super 8)

''Kerry finished first in Group 1 and advanced to the All-Ireland semi-final.''

All-Ireland Semi-Final

Match 1

Dublin footballer Jonny Cooper at the RDS Arena cropped

Summary

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

played

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

in the

All-Ireland Minor Football Championship The Electric Ireland All-Ireland Minor Football Championship is the premier under-17 "knockout" competition in Gaelic football played in Ireland. 2017 was the final year of the minor under 18 football championship as it were replaced by an under ...

final which took place before the senior final. Cork won the game on a 3–20 to 3–14 scoreline after extra-time. The Down team that won the 1994 All-Ireland Final were presented to the crowd before the senior match to mark the 25th anniversary of their win. Peter Keane's decision to bring in Jack Barry instead of

limited the effectiveness of Dublin's

Brian Fenton Brian Fenton (born 2 March 1994) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for the Raheny club and for the Dublin county team. He was the 2018 and 2020 All Stars Footballer of the Year. Education and family His father (Brian senior), is from Spa, out ...

. Dublin played facing the Railway End in the first half. Nevertheless,

Paul Mannion Paul Mannion (born 25 May 1993) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for the Kilmacud Crokes club and, since 2013, at senior level for the Dublin county team. He transferred to Donegal Boston in 2022. Personal He studied International Com ...

had pointed to put Dublin into the lead within 17 seconds. A

David Clifford David Clifford (Irish: ''Daithí Ó Clúmháin'') (born 22 January 1999) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays as a corner-forward or full-forward at club level for Fossa and East Kerry and for the Kerry county team. He is regarded as one ...

miss for Kerry was followed by

Seán O'Shea Seán O'Shea (Irish: ''Seán Ó Sé'') (born 17 July 1998) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for Kerry SFC club Kenmare Shamrocks and at inter-county level with the Kerry senior football team. He usually lines out as a forward. Career ...

equalising for the Kingdom. By the fifth minute Dublin were in the lead by 0–3 to 0–1,

Dean Rock Dean Rock (born 26 February 1990) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who has been a senior member of the Dublin county team since 2013. He has represented Dublin at all grades, Minor, Junior, U21 and Senior. He is a noted free taker and scored the ...

having scored one from play and one free. Paul Geaney had a goal chance for Kerry in the seventh minute, beating Stephen Cluxton in the Dublin goal only for James McCarthy to clear the ball off the line. Clifford missed again. Then he scored a point.

conceded a penalty to Kerry while holding onto Clifford. Having stepped off his line in advance of Geaney striking the ball, Cluxton saved; and Sean O'Shea levelled the game from the resulting '45.

Stephen O'Brien Sir Stephen Rothwell O'Brien, (born 1 April 1957) is a British politician and diplomat who was the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. O'Brien assumed office on 29 May 2015, succeed ...

and Mannion exchanged scores before referee

David Gough David Gough ( ; born 1983) is a Gaelic football referee from County Meath. He is a member of the Slane club. His four umpires are father Eugene, brother Stephen, uncle Terry and cousin Dean, who have assisted him with every game since he started ...

showed Cooper the

yellow card Yellow card may refer to: * Yellow card (sport), shown in many sports after a rules infraction or, by analogy, a serious warning in other areas * Yellowcard, an American alternative rock band * Yellow Card Scheme, a United Kingdom initiative conce ...

for persistent fouling, after another tangle with Clifford. Sean O'Shea put Kerry ahead with the free. Then

scored his fourth championship goal to give Dublin a 1–4 to 0–5 lead. Dublin's Rock and Kerry's O'Shea continued to exchange points until the end of the half ( Con O'Callaghan's score being the only exception). Then, with the break approaching, Cooper fouled Clifford once more and received a second

and then a

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...

, reducing Dublin to 14 players. Sean O'Shea sent the resulting free between the posts to leave the half-time score at Dublin 1–9 Kerry 0–8. Kerry's Seán O'Shea scored the opening point of the second half from a '45. Cluxton then tipped a Paul Murphy strike on goal against the Dublin crossbar. O'Shea scored another point for Kerry, swiftly followed by McCaffrey fisting the ball over the bar for Dublin. Kerry's

Gavin Crowley Gavin is a male given name originating from Scotland. It is a variation on the medieval name Gawain, meaning "God send" or "white hawk" (or falcon). Sir Gawain was a knight of King Arthur's Round Table. ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' is an ep ...

then scored his first championship point. A score from another Rock free was followed by another McCaffrey point. With the score at Dublin 1–12 Kerry 0–12, Dublin's Paul Mannion kicked the ball wide in the fiftieth minute. Rock scored another free and McCaffrey scored another point. Killian Spillane then netted a goal for Kerry to reduce Dublin's lead to two points. Kerry substitute Tommy Walsh reduced the deficit to one point. Sean O'Shea brought the sides level with his ninth point of the game (second from play) with eight minutes of regulation time remaining. Clifford sent a shot straight into the arms of Cluxton. With three minutes of regulation time remaining, Kerry led thanks to a point from Killian Spillane. In the closing stages, and with Dublin behind and in danger of losing their five-in-a-row bid, Hawk-Eye ruled out what had been thought to be an equalising point from Dublin's

Cormac Costello Cormac Costello (born 18 July 1994) is a Gaelic football forward for the Dublin county team, with which he has won three All-Ireland Senior Football Championship medals and four National Football League medals. The former Ardscoil Rís stude ...

in between uncharacteristically wild and inaccurate shots from distance by both Brian Howard and

Diarmuid Connolly Diarmuid Connolly (born 7 July 1987) is an Irish Gaelic footballer. His National Football League (Ireland), league and All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, championship career at senior level as a forward playing for the Dublin county footb ...

(a substitute for Howard), before Rock brought Dublin level for the last time. The match finished level, requiring a replay. McCaffrey finished top scorer from open play with 1–3. The three points were also a classic

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...

, sent over with fist and both feet. Defensively, he forced eight turnovers of possession. McCaffrey won the man of the match award, his second consecutive award after the one from the 2018 final; "RTÉ veterans" were reported to be finding it difficult to recall such an occurrence over previous finals.

Details

Match 2

Summary

The replay took place at Croke Park on 14 September. Dublin replaced M. D. MacAuley with Eoin Murchan; Kerry brought in Diarmuid O'Connor in place of team captain

Gavin White Gavin White is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for the Dr Crokes club and at senior level for the Kerry county team. Honours ;Kerry * All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (1): 2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left ...

. Paul Murphy took on the captain's role. The

coin toss A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to ...

was won by Dublin; they opted to play facing the Railway End in the first half. Con O'Callaghan opened the scoring for Dublin within seconds of the throw-in. Eoin Murchan then handpassed to

Ciarán Kilkenny Ciarán Kilkenny (born 7 July 1993) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for the Dublin county team and as a dual player for his club Castleknock. He was previously on the playing list of Australian rules football club Hawthorn, as a rook ...

, who sent Dublin into a two-point lead. A

free gave Kerry their opening point.

then restored Dublin's two-point lead, with Kilkenny then increasing the lead to three and Mannion (again) to four. Paul Geaney scored Kerry's second point of the game. A third Kerry point followed from

, before O'Callaghan scored another for Dublin. Then Dublin's

David Byrne David Byrne (; born 14 May 1952) is a Scottish-American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, writer, music theorist, visual artist and filmmaker. He was a founding member and the principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of ...

scored the second championship point of his career.

Adrian Spillane Adrian Spillane (born 19 April 1994) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for the Templenoe club and the Kerry county team. He is the son of the famous Kerry footballer Tom and thus his uncles are Mick and Pat who also played for Kerry. His ...

scored for Kerry, Clifford following suit with two points in quick succession. Then Kilkenny and Geaney traded scores. Then O'Callaghan scored for Dublin. Then Dublin's

lost the ball and Kerry's Clifford, Brian Ó Beaglaoich and

Tadhg Morley Tadhg Morley ( ga, Tadhg Ó Muraile) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays as a centre back at senior level for the Kerry county team. Playing career Underage Morley played minor for Kerry in 2010 and 2011. He played Under-21 for Kerry in ...

raced through on goal, only for O'Callaghan to haul the Kerryman down and O'Shea to hit the resulting free over the bar. Michael Fitzsimons was wrongly adjudged to have committed the foul by the referee. Dublin then scored a point of their own before O'Shea sent another free over for Kerry. Geaney brought the teams level with a point for Kerry as half-time approached. McCaffrey, meanwhile, fell, apparently struggling with injury. The half-time score was level with ten points apiece: Dublin 0–10 Kerry 0–10. McCaffrey did not take to the field for the second half.

came on in his place. Dublin's Eoin Murchan reacted to the throw-in by racing straight for the Kerry goal, hitting the ball into the right corner of the net.

later described Murchan's goal as "arguably the most important moment in the history of Dublin football". O'Callaghan then pointed for Dublin. Clifford and Geaney each scored a point for Kerry.

sent the ball wide in the 43rd minute - this was Dublin's first wide of the game. Then Seán O'Shea scored for Kerry. Then Connolly struck the ball directly at Kilkenny from distance; Kilkenny simply gathered the ball and converted it into another point for Dublin. Mannion sent Dublin into a three-point lead in the 51st minute, a minute before Connolly sent the ball wide. Dublin goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton then saved a

shot. Mannion scored again for Dublin. Clifford reduced Dublin's lead to three points. Then a Connolly pass found

Niall Scully Niall Scully (born 19 April 1994) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for the Templeogue Synge Street club and for the Dublin county team. References 1994 births Living people Dublin inter-county Gaelic footballers Gaelic football fo ...

, who sent the ball over the bar instead of at the goal; it proved to be Scully's last involvement as he was then replaced by

. Geaney missed.

came on for Paul Murphy. Jack Barry added to Kerry's wide tally before being replaced by

James O'Donoghue James O'Donoghue (born 19 June 1990) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for Kerry SFC club Killarney Legion. He is a former player at senior level for the Kerry county team. Career Born in Killarney, County Kerry, O'Donoghue's father, ...

. Dean Rock sent Dublin into a five-point lead with two minutes of regulation time remaining. Connolly had a shot on goal saved; O'Callaghan gathered the rebound but his effort was also saved. Rock sent the resulting '45 between the posts to give Dublin a six-point lead. As the seconds ticked away, Kerry resorted to

Hail Mary pass A Hail Mary pass is a very long forward pass in American football, typically made in desperation, with an exceptionally small chance of achieving a completion. Due to the difficulty of a completion with this pass, it makes reference to the Catho ...

es, with Stephen O'Brien sending the ball wide. Dublin defeated Kerry on a scoreline of 1–18 to 0–15. They became the first male team in GAA history to win five consecutive All-Ireland titles at this level.

was named as man of the match in the replay, becoming the first forward since 2013's Bernard Brogan the Second to win the award.

Details

Post-match

Dublin goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton celebrated — by taking out a broom and sweeping the changing room floor. Stewards later witnessed him mopping the floor too, when all the other players had left. Cluxton was later named

All Stars Footballer of the Year The Gaelic Athletic Association & Gaelic Player's Association All Stars Footballer of the Year — known for sponsorship reasons as the Vodafone Footballer of the Year — is a Gaelic football award. It is presented annually to the footballer wh ...

Lord Mayor of Dublin The Lord Mayor of Dublin ( ga, Ardmhéara Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the honorary title of the chairperson ( ga, Cathaoirleach, links=no ) of Dublin City Council which is the local government body for the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. Th ...

Paul McAuliffe Paul McAuliffe (born 8 February 1977) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin North-West constituency since the 2020 general election. He previously served as Lord Mayor of Dublin from 2019 to 2020. ...

proposed Dublin manager Jim Gavin for the

Freedom of the City of Dublin The Freedom of the City of Dublin is awarded by Dublin City Council after approving a person nominated by the Lord Mayor. Eighty-two people have been honoured under the current process introduced in 1876. Most honourees have made a contribution ...

; all members of

Dublin City Council Dublin City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Dublin in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the council was ...

"warmly welcomed" McAuliffe's proposal and the motion was passed in a vote taken on the evening of 23 September 2019. The last time the award was given was in 2016. The last GAA figure to receive the award was Kevin Heffernan in 2004.

and

Paddy Andrews Patrick Andrews (1913-1981) was an Irish footballer who played as a midfielder in the League of Ireland. Andrews was a part of the Bohemians amateur team of the late 1920s and early 1930s. He won full international caps for Irish Free State, ...

spent a week in New York.

went on holiday to

Marbella Marbella ( , , ) is a city and municipality in southern Spain, belonging to the province of Málaga in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is part of the Costa del Sol and is the headquarters of the Association of Municipalities of the reg ...

with his girlfriend for a few days.

Footnotes

References

External links

Leitrim lifting: Kerry ploy evokes echoes in Aughawillan 25 years on - David Moran and Tommy Walsh's outside the box thinking last Sunday

{{Kerry county football team matches

Final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, 2019 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Finals Dublin county football team matches Kerry county football team matches All-Ireland Senior Football

Background

Paths to the final

Dublin

Leinster Championship

All-Ireland Quarter-Final Group Stage (Super 8)

All-Ireland Semi-Final

Kerry

Munster Championship The Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest inter-county hurlin ...

All-Ireland Quarter-Final Group Stage (Super 8)

All-Ireland Semi-Final

Match 1

Summary

Details

Match 2

Summary

Details

Post-match

See also

Footnotes

References

External links