Dublin, under the captaincy of goalkeeper John O'Leary and the guidance of manager Pat O'Neill, retained their Leinster title in a very poor encounter which failed to match the pre-game hype. Shorn of Mick Deegan, Niall Guiden and Paul Clarke through injury and Tom Carr through suspension, Dublin just about managed to hurdle a disjointed Kildare challenge.

Charlie Redmond was the contributor-in-chief with five points, but only one of these came from play. Kildare full back John Crofton was selected but didn't play, withdrawing on Saturday night. Mick O'Dwyer's charges trailed by 0-2 to 0-3 at the break in a half noted for several bone-jarring collisions. Dublin's Vinnie Murphy was sent off after 55 minutes.

Dublin's performance in the second half improved while their opponents' faltered and a man of the match contribution from Jack Sheedy helped secure victory.

Dublin would go on to lose in the All-Ireland semi-final to Derry.

Dublin: J O'Leary (capt); C Walsh, D Deasy, P Moran; P Curran, K Barr, P O'Neill; J Sheedy, P Bealin (0- 1); E Heery, D Farrell (0-1), P Gilroy (0-1); J Gavin, V Murphy (0-1), C Redmond (0-5, three frees, one 45). Subs: M Galvin (0-1) for Gavin (half-time); J Barr (0-1) for Galvin (59 mins).

Kildare: C Byrne; S Dowling, D Dalton, N Donlon; D O'Connell (capt), G Ryan, B Fahy; M Lynch, S McGovern (0-1); D Doyle, N Buckley (0-4, all frees), A Rainbow; P McLoughlin, J McDonald (0-1), L Miley. Subs: D Kerrigan (0-1) for Miley (48 mins); T Harris for Doyle (58 mins).

Referee: T McDermott (Cavan).