It's their first defeat in 37 games and over two years. They lost by a point in a League Final to Kerry. They are double All-Ireland champions. Things can't be that bad. Asking is there something wrong based on them finally losing one game seems stupid.
But the reason Dublin got within a point of Kerry yesterday is because of an incredible resolve not to be beaten. Really, they should have lost by more. They have the fight to the end mentality that exists only in the great teams. Dublin could have very easily drew or won yesterday, and pulled something out the way they did all the way through the league.
Just incredible. Dublin the width of a post away from extra time and saving another game that seemed gone. But Kerry deserved it.
— Michael Foley (@MickFoley76) April 9, 2017
In fairness though, it would have merely hid the fact that they were outplayed, and not for the first time this year.
Over the course of the League campaign, Dublin drew three games, to Tyrone, Donegal and Kerry. In all three games, they did very well to get the draw. Against Monaghan, they won by a goal, coming back from six points down in the second half.
It's important not to suggest that any of these results were lucky. It's an incredible resolve that keeps them going to the end. It's a sign of true champions. But the fact is, in four of their seven League games, Dublin could have lost. They were far too good for Roscommon and Cavan and their only statement performance came against Mayo, who seemed to have their own issues throughout the campaign.
In the eighth game, they'd finally left themselves too much to do. It was a thrilling League Final and maybe it was more important for Kerry to get past this team just once than it was for Dublin.
Maybe the undefeated run was becoming a noose around their neck and this will be a release. Gavin said after the game it hadn't been an issue
No, it's never been spoken about by the players. Obviously people outside talk about it, but we've always been focused upon each game that we play. It wasn't being spoken about a couple of months ago, and then it just popped up. It hasn't been referenced at all
That's the kind of noises we used to hear from Kilkenny before and after the "Five-in-a-row" final in 2010, but the further removed we get from that game, the more we know it had become a burden for them.
Gary and Ambrose were going mental, ladshttps://t.co/CX1Kd29Kgq
— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) April 9, 2017
It's also worth noting that Dublin's preparation this season is behind that of other years. The senior players didn't play in the O'Byrne Cup, instead going on holidays, where numerous players swear no training was done whatsoever. It's a team on the road for a long time, and with a Leinster Championship to cruise through, there is plenty of time for them to catch up on that sharpness before August. It may be that the League was sacrificed by Jim Gavin and the Dubs are just so good that they still almost won the competition despite being behind all of the other teams physically.
While that's a scary prospect, it shouldn't be doubted that Jim Gavin didn't think they hadn't done enough to put out a League winning team. He was very frustrated about the performance talking to the media after the game, and seemed to be talking about characteristics that have followed Dublin throughout the campaign.
We’re disappointed with that performance. Too many unforced errors. Gave the ball away too much. Certainly had enough of it. The third quarter of the game, we kicked an awful lot of the ball away.
Some great defensive play and we worked the ball up the field, and just turned it over needlessly. Kicked it away, handpassed it away – very uncharacteristic.
So, is there any chance this team is on the wane? They've won four All-Irelands in the last six, and had won the previous four League titles. Despite all the talk of a conveyor belt, it's still a very similar team that has done all of this. Eight of the team that started yesterday were involved in the 2011 All-Ireland Final. Of the 20 players used in the 2013 final, 15 played yesterday, including every forward. Other than Bernard Brogan and Stephen Cluxton, the age profile of the team isn't bad, but there are a lot of miles on the clock.
Chances are this is all just a little bit of a slump, and by the time we reach August, the Dubs will be back to full pace. They will be rightly favourites for the championship ahead. There are some signs from the League though, and plenty for the likes of Mayo, Tyrone, Donegal and Kerry to look at in hope.
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