All-Ireland SFC, Group 3, Round 3: Dublin 3-23 Sligo 0-8
As Sligo manager Tony McEntee tried to sum up his side’s defeat, the Westmeath footballers shuffled alongside him as they made their way out through the narrow Breffni Park tunnel to face Tyrone.
It was in keeping with the relentless nature of this year’s All-Ireland SFC, the games just keep coming. The dust hadn’t settled on Sligo’s 24-point defeat to Dublin and already the match was becoming an afterthought.
It was a result that marked the end of Sligo’s season, but in some ways perhaps signalled the start of Dublin’s. The race for Sam Maguire is now under way. The Dubs could have won this by whatever they wanted, in the closing stages they tapped over points when in more testing circumstances they might have sought goals.
“I think at this stage I would have to say yes, they are the best team we have played this year,” said McEntee.
Seán Moran: League’s championship promise may be clouding but it remains bright at the top
Malachy Clerkin: The GAA should make more of St Patrick’s Day - and more of its intercounty stars
Sports Review 2023: Mary Hannigan picks the best quotes from the sporting year
GAA happy that GAAGo has ‘bedded in well’ as 2024 season launches
Dublin led 1-13 to 0-4 at half-time and added 2-4 after the interval before Sligo registered their fifth point. Sligo went 42 minutes without scoring from play.
Colm Basquel delivered his best display for Dublin, tormenting the Sligo defence throughout, finishing with 1-3 while also creating scoring opportunities for his colleagues.
Dublin obliterated Sligo on their kick-outs and Aidan Devaney really struggled to find a team-mate from his restarts, especially in the first half when Dublin squeezed their Connacht opponents. With nobody to aim for, all too often the Sligo goalkeeper thumped the ball out around the middle, where he invariably managed to find Brian Fenton or James McCarthy.
“For 20 minutes we looked to be managing okay and then we gave away what I think was a very slack goal,” added McEntee.
“And then they pinned us down on kick-outs and from that point on we got absolutely hammered on kick-outs for the rest of the first half.”
Sligo kept the game competitive for the opening quarter of an hour and a fine score by Seán Carrabine in the 14th minute edged them in front for the first and only time all afternoon.
But Dublin’s opening goal arrived in the 19th minute when Con O’Callaghan palmed home from close range after a neat incision by Paddy Small. And that was that.
Sligo will be disappointed by how they defended in the build-up to the goal, a high ball in by Niall Scully was allowed bounce in behind Brian Cox and Luke Towey, who then presented Small with a channel along the endline. He accepted the invitation and was able to square the ball across the face of the goal for O’Callaghan to score, 1-2 to 0-3.
They scored 1-6 without reply in that period as Sligo simply couldn’t get the ball out of their half. It was wave after wave of Dublin attack. The interval couldn’t come quickly enough for the Yeats County.
But it didn’t get any better at the beginning of the second half with Basquel scoring 1-1 in the opening six minutes of the restart. The Ballyboden player then set up Eoin Murchan for Dublin’s third goal moments later.
“Collie’s been working really hard on his game,” said Dessie Farrell. “It probably hasn’t worked out for him in the past the way he would have liked but he’s definitely showed us what he’s capable of this season.”
A season in which the Dubs have blown hot and cold, yet they enter the All-Ireland quarter-finals in decent shape. Ominously, for the rest of the contenders, Dublin’s squad is starting to look stacked again too – Jack McCaffrey and Paul Mannion came off the bench here.
No venues have been confirmed for the quarter-finals yet, but Farrell sidestepped the chance to articulate a desire for a Croke Park fixture by instead saying Dublin would be happy to go on the road.
“For us, we’re delighted to come out of Croke Park,” he said. “I know there’s this thing about Dublin in Croke Park, but you saw it there again today, there’s a different stimulus for players when you travel, there’s a bit of a connection with the supporters around that.
“There’s a different buzz, even in the dressingroom and the hotel beforehand. We actually do genuinely appreciate getting away because Croke Park is a brilliant pitch and a brilliant stadium but it can be run of the mill.”
The run of the mill part of the season is over now.
The loudest noise at Breffni Park on Sunday was a booming crunch of thunder just seconds after Dublin had gone 3-19 to 0-6 ahead. Sligo were chasing shadows by then, the sky had long since fallen in around them.
The Dubs march on. The thunder rolls.
DUBLIN: Stephen Cluxton; Daire Newcombe, Michael Fitzsimons, Eoin Murchan (1-0); Brian Howard (0-1), John Small (0-1), Lee Gannon (0-3); Brian Fenton, James McCarthy; Niall Scully, Seán Bugler (0-2), Ciarán Kilkenny (0-2); Paddy Small (0-4, three frees), Con O’Callaghan (1-5, one free), Colm Basquel (1-3, one free).
Subs: Tom Lahiff for McCarthy (46 mins); Cian Murphy for J Small, Paul Mannion (0-2) for Scully (both 50); Lorcan O’Dell for O’Callaghan (54 mins); Jack McCaffrey for Murchan (59).
SLIGO: Aidan Devaney; Luke Nicholson, Evan Lyons, Darragh Cummins (0-1); Jack Lavin, Brian Cox, Luke Towey; Cian Lally, Paul Kilcoyne; Finnian Cawley, Alan Reilly, Paul McNamara; Pat Spillane, Seán Carrabine (0-4, two frees, one 45), Niall Murphy (0-2).
Subs: Mikey Gordon for Towey (29 mins); Gerard O’Kelly Lynch for Lally (50 mins); Mark Walsh for Cummins (51 mins); Patrick O’Connor (0-1) for Reilly (52 mins); Keelan Cawley for Lavin (61 mins).
Referee: Niall Cullen (Fermanagh).
