The 2011 All-Ireland Football Final was the 124th event of its kind. It was the culmination of

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by ki ...

's premier competition, 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 was played between Kerry and

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

on 18 September 2011 at

Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and h ...

. Dublin were victorious by a single point, achieving their first All-Ireland Senior Football Championship title since

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

. This was the first Kerry–Dublin final since

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

. History was made as the winning point was scored by a goalkeeper,

Stephen Cluxton Stephen Cluxton (born 17 December 1981) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who played as a goalkeeper at senior level for the Dublin county team. Cluxton made his senior debut for Dublin during the 2001 Championship. Since then he has established ...

of Dublin, the first time this had ever happened in the final. Cluxton's point gave the title to Dublin as, with the teams level, the match would have had to be replayed at a later date had it ended with both teams on the same score."All-Ireland Football Final: Dublin 1–12 1–11 Kerry"
. ''BBC Sport''. 18 September 2011. RTÉ called it "one of the most gripping

Sam Maguire Cup The Sam Maguire Cup ( ga, Chorn Sam Mhic Uidhir), often referred to as Sam or The Sam , is a trophy awarded annually by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) to the team that wins the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the main competiti ...

deciders of the modern era" and the BBC said it was a "dramatic comeback victory." Going into the 2011 Championship

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 ...

were the defending champions after defeating Down in the 2010 final. However, Cork were eliminated in the quarter-finals in 2011 by Mayo. On 30 August 2011, Joe McQuillan was confirmed as the referee for the senior final. This was his first time to referee an All Ireland Senior Football final. Ahead of the game, Irish politicians

Leo Varadkar Leo Eric Varadkar ( ; born 18 January 1979) is an Irish politician who has served as Taoiseach since December 2022, and previously from 2017 to 2020. He served as Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment from June 2020 to D ...

and

Aodhán Ó Ríordáin Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (; born 22 July 1976) is an Irish Labour Party politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin Bay North constituency since the 2020 general election, and previously from 2011 to 2016 for the Dublin North-C ...

were censured by officials for flying unauthorised flags from their car windows in public. The flags favoured the Dublin team. After the game, Dublin captain

Bryan Cullen Bryan Cullen (born 7 April 1984) is an Irish former Gaelic footballer who played as a left wing-forward at senior level for the Dublin county team. Cullen announced his retirement on 9 January 2015. He stated 'I would like to extend my sincere ...

was offered the role of coaching

Leinster Rugby Leinster Rugby ( ga, Rugbaí Laighean) is one of the four professional provincial rugby union teams from the island of Ireland and the most successful Irish team domestically. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugb ...

's academy players. The 2011 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final attracted an audience share of almost 75 per cent, with three quarters of the available audience watching the final from beginning to end. This compared with an audience share of just over 65 per cent who watched the shock

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

victory over

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

at the

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

the previous day. In 2018,

Martin Breheny use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , nationality = , other_names = , siglum = , citizenship = , ...

listed this as the twelfth greatest All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final.

Paths to the final

Kerry defeated Tipperary,

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2 ...

and

to win the

Munster Senior Football Championship The Munster Senior Football Championship, known simply as the Munster Championship and shortened to Munster SFC, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Munster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It ...

. They went on to defeat

for a second time in the All-Ireland Quarter final and then Mayo in the semi final. Dublin defeated

Laois County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medi ...

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional ce ...

and

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 ...

to win the

Leinster Senior Football Championship The Leinster Senior Football Championship, known simply as the Leinster Championship and shortened to Leinster SFC, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GA ...

. They went on to defeat Tyrone in the All Ireland Quarter Final and

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

in the semi final. The Donegal versus Dublin football semi-final had the largest crowd attendance of the season prior to the final (81,436).

History

This was the 12th time Kerry and

met in an All-Ireland football final and the first since 1985. Kerry had won eight of the previous meetings, and Dublin had won three. Kerry are the most successful Gaelic football team taking part in the

, having previously won 36 and taken part in 55 All Ireland Football finals since the competition's inception in 1887. Dublin are the second most successful team, having won 22 and taken part in 35 finals prior to this match. The first senior final meeting between Dublin and Kerry was in

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies fo ...

. Dublin defeated Kerry in the 1923 final but would not do so again until the 1976 final. The 1970s was a particularly important time in the history of the rivalry between the sides due to the regularity with which the teams encountered one another. In the decade before the 2011 final Dublin and Kerry had met on five occasions, with Kerry regularly dispatching Dublin aside with ease. Their previous meeting (in the quarter-finals of the 2009 championship) saw Kerry defeat Dublin by 17 points.

Pre-match

Team selection

On 13 September 2011, Kerry manager, Jack O'Connor named an unchanged team from that which had played Mayo in the semi final. There was some concern that

Eoin Brosnan Eoin Brosnan,born c.1980,is an Irish Gaelic football player who plays at centre forward. He is a former member of the Kerry senior county team and plays his club football for Dr Crokes. As of late 2021, he was a practicing solicitor, working f ...

would be unable to play following an ankle injury, but he had recovered sufficiently to be named on the starting team. Three days later,

Pat Gilroy Pat Gilroy (born 3 November 1971) is a former Gaelic footballer and manager, who most recently managed the senior Dublin county team (2009-2012). A former Dublin footballer himself, he led Dublin to their first All-Ireland Senior Football Champi ...

, the Dublin Manager, named his starting 15, which also featured no changes since their semi final match against Donegal. Following 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 dia ...

for striking Donegal player

Marty Boyle Marty Boyle is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for Naomh Conaill and also, formerly, for the Donegal county team. In 2005, Boyle played for his club in the final of the Donegal Senior Football Championship. He played (and scored) for hi ...

in the semi final, Dublin's

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 ...

was initially ineligible to play in the final. Having appealed this decision to the CHC, he was, however, cleared to play.

Minors

Prior to the senior final, Tipperary defeated Dublin in the minor final to take their first minor football title since 1934, it was an extraordinary 3–09 to 1–14 comeback after the Dublin minors appeared to have them dead and buried with Tipperary coming from six points behind at one stage in the second half.

Match

Summary

First half

Kerry were the first team to score, after just two minutes of the match, with

Declan O'Sullivan Declan O'Sullivan (born 18 December 1983) is an Irish former sportsperson. He last played Gaelic football with his local club Dromid Pearses, his divisional side South Kerry and at senior level for the Kery county team between 2003 and his r ...

fisting the ball over the bar. Nine minutes later, after several wides from both sides,

Alan Brogan Alan Brogan (born 11 January 1982) is a Gaelic footballer from the St Oliver Plunketts/Eoghan Ruadh club who played for the Dublin county team from 2002 until his retirement in 2015. He can play in the full forward line but usually played cen ...

curled a shot inside the upright to equalise. Paul Flynn was booked for a high challenge on Aidan O'Mahony a minute later. In the 15th minute, Alan Brogan scored his second point of the match to give Dublin the lead. Two minutes later, Darren O'Sullivan broke through the Dublin defence and offloaded the ball to

Colm Cooper Colm "the Gooch" Cooper (born 3 June 1983) is an Irish Gaelic footballer whose league and championship career at senior level with the Kerry county team spanned fifteen years from 2002 to 2017. Born in Killarney, County Kerry, Cooper was born ...

who put it past

to score a goal for Kerry. With the score at Kerry 1-01 – 0-02 Dublin, Bernard Brogan got his first point of the day from a free. In the 24th minute,

Rory O'Carroll Rory O'Carroll (born 30 November 1989) is a footballer and hurler with Dublin and Kilmacud Crokes. He lined out as the full back on the Dublin senior football team. He is the brother of inter-county footballer and hurler Ross O'Carroll, inter-co ...

was given a yellow card for an off-the-ball incident with Darren O'Sullivan. A minute later, Kerry made their first substitution, bringing on Paul Galvin for corner-forward

Kieran O'Leary Kieran O'Leary (born 28 July 1987) is an Irish Gaelic footballer. He plays at U21 and senior levels with the Dr Crokes club team and the Kerry county team. With Dr. Crokes he reached the 2007 All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship fin ...

. In the 28th minute, goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton scored for Dublin from a free and then Bernard Brogan scored his second and third points, giving Dublin a two-point lead. Substitute Galvin then scored his first point, leaving the score Kerry 1-02 – 0-06 Dublin at half time.

Second half

Three minutes into the second half, Kerry midfielder, Bryan Sheehan was given a yellow card for an unfair challenge on Michael Darragh MacAuley. Bernard Brogan scored the free from a relatively easy position. Two minutes later, Brogan combined with

Denis Bastick Denis Bastick (born 8 May 1981) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for Templeogue Synge Street and, formerly, for the Dublin county team. Biography Bastick attended St. Josephs BNS Primary School in Terenure. Bastick's club side Templeogue Sy ...

to give Bastick his first point of the afternoon. In the 42nd minute, Sheehan was fouled 15m out from goal, giving Kerry their first score of the half. They followed this up with a fisted point from

Kieran Donaghy Kieran Donaghy (born 1 March 1983) is an Irish Gaelic footballer and basketball player. He plays for Tralee club Austin Stacks and, formerly, at senior level for the Kerry county team. Donaghy won four All-Ireland Senior Football Championship ...

a minute later, and a free from

after

Ger Brennan Ger Brennan is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for St Vincents and, formerly, for the Dublin county team. Early life From a family of nine, he attended Belvedere College. At Belvedere he played rugby, soccer, hurling and Gaelic football ...

was booked for fouling

. Six minutes later, Sheehan went around three men to score another Kerry point and leave the score at Kerry 1-06 – 0-08 Dublin. At this point, both sides made a substitution. For Dublin, Kevin McManamon came on for Paul Flynn and for Kerry,

Barry John Keane Barry John Keane (born 1 May 1990) is an Irish Gaelic footballer with Kerry GAA and has played with them at minor Under 21 and senior level. He is the grandson of the famous former Kerry player John Dowling. He plays with the Kerins O'Rahilly ...

came on for Donnacha Walsh. The teams swapped frees, with Sheehan scoring at one end and Brogan at the other. In the 56th minute, Sheehan scored another free and Dublin introduced

Eoghan O'Gara Eoghan O'Gara (born 24 September 1985) is a Gaelic footballer who played as a forward at senior level for the Dublin county team. O'Gara attended St. Josephs BNS primary school in Terenure. Playing career O'Gara made his Championship debut for ...

, replacing Barry Cahill. Cooper then scored another free and another point from play to give Kerry a 4-point lead with 10 minutes left in the match. In the 64th minute, Alan Brogan fed the ball through to McManamon, who rounded his marker and put the ball past goalkeeper, Brendan Kealy for a Dublin goal and to reduce the gap to a single point. A minute later,

Kevin Nolan Kevin Anthony Jance Nolan (born 24 June 1982) is an English former professional footballer and current first team coach for Premier League club West Ham United. He has represented England at under-21 level. After growing up in Toxteth, Live ...

scored the equaliser and in the 68th minute, Bernard Brogan put Dublin a point ahead. Entering injury time,

levelled the scores again with a point from 35 metres out. With seconds left on the clock, McManamon was fouled leaving

to convert a free kick to make Dublin All-Ireland champions for the 23rd time.

Details

Post-match

Trophy presentation

The trophy was presented from the Hogan Stand to Dublin captain

by GAA president

Christy Cooney Christy Cooney ( Irish: Críostóir Ó Cuana, born 1952 in Youghal, County Cork, Ireland) is a Gaelic games administrator, who served as the 36th president of the Gaelic Athletic Association. He was elected president at the annual GAA Congress o ...

. After the presentation the Dublin team and management went on a lap of honour around the Croke Park pitch. Along the way, they met former Dublin manager,

Paul Caffrey Paul Caffrey is a former Gaelic footballer who played for the Na Fianna club and for the Dublin county team. He is also a former manager of his county team and is a Dublin-based Garda. Background Caffrey grew up on Dorset Street on the Nort ...

, who was on duty in his capacity as a garda. A Dublin fan also sneaked onto the pitch to celebrate. He put on

Eamonn Fennell Eamonn Fennell (born 1984) is a Gaelic footballer who plays for the St Vincents club and, formerly, for northside club O'Tooles. He has played for the Dublin county team in the past. Inter-county Fennell was first brought onto the Dublin tea ...

's discarded tracksuit top after joining the substitutes' bench and was seen on live television and in photographs.

Man of the match

Dublin's

was named as the official GAA man of the match on

RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the national broadcaster of Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, whil ...

's '' The Sunday Game'' programme on the evening of the match. Other publications selected different players. For example, the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'' selected Kevin McManamon.

Homecoming

On the evening of their victory,

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 ...

Andrew Montague invited the winning Dublin team to the Mansion House the following evening for a civic reception in their honour. The public was welcomed. An estimated 35,000 people turned up to the homecoming at

Merrion Square Merrion Square () is a Georgian garden square on the southside of Dublin city centre. History The square was laid out in 1752 by the estate of Viscount FitzWilliam and was largely complete by the beginning of the 19th century. The demand f ...

References

;Timelines
As It Happened: Dublin Win Sam
RTÉ Sport, 18 September 2011

External links

* Official team websites
DublinKerry

Official GAA website

"Tomás Ó Sé on the story behind an iconic photo"

RTÉ Sport RTÉ Sport is a department of Irish public broadcaster RTÉ. The department provides sporting coverage through a number of platforms including RTÉ Radio, RTÉ Television, RTÉ.ie, RTÉ Player Sport and RTÉ Mobile. RTÉ holds the television ...

. 7 April 2020. {{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 con ...

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, 2011 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Finals Dublin county football team matches Kerry county football team matches