Dubs show their class to win All-Ireland title

BALLYBODEN St Enda’s forward Colm Basquel and Thomas Davis defender Cian Murphy helped Dublin to the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship title following a two-point win over old rivals Kerry reports Hayden Moore.

Thomas Davis player Cian Murphy replaced Eoin Murchan when the All-Ireland Final was still in the melting pot at Croke Park on Sunday.

A nippy defender, Murphy was tasked with marking Paudie Clifford and the two bounced off one another both on and off the ball for the remainder of the game.

Murphy arrived on the scene last year but had a breakout season in 2023, strongly featuring all throughout the league and had a memorable turn off the bench at half-back in the Leinster Final.

While opportunities were harder to come by during the All-Ireland series, the former Scoil Maelruain student put his stamp on proceedings on the biggest day in the GAA calendar.

Murphy has come a long way since captaining Scoil Maelruain to a Cumann na mBunscoil title in Croke Park back in 2008.

Ballyboden players Ryan Basquel, Colm Basquel and Ross McGarry celebrate

“I will never forget that day in Croke Park,” Murphy wrote on his former school’s website some 15-years-ago, after being presented with the Cumann na nGael cup by Barney Rock, “Dublin legend”.

Perhaps it was written in the stars that Murphy would once again ascend the steps of the Hogan Stand to lift silverware, only this time it was alongside Barney’s son Dean to raise the holy grail, the Sam Maguire.

It was a massive Colm Basquel turnover which typified the Ballyboden St Enda’s man’s first-class performance and changed the complexion of Dublin’s prospects in the final.

With 42-minutes on the clock in the All-Ireland Final on Sunday, the Boys in Blue were trailing by three points and needed a spark to ignite a comeback.

Paul Geaney had just pointed for the Kingdom and Stephen Cluxton’s resulting short kickout ended up with Basquel, and he burned past his Paul Murphy before splitting the posts down the other end.

Superstar David Clifford scored a lovely point in return to re-establish their three-point advantage.

However, with the score at 0-8 to 1-8 in Kerry’s favour, and Dublin trying to push for scores, Basquel hassled and harried Jack O’Connor’s men.

First pressing goalkeeper Shane Ryan, Basquel sprinted from player-to-player hunting for the ball and eventually forced Gavin White to panic and successfully turned him over.

The former Coláiste Éanna student made a 20-metre sprint directly at goal, drawing two defenders in before passing to Paddy Small, who rattled the net to draw level.

Kerry did come back into it with a rally of three successive points through Seán O’Shea and the industrious Paudie Clifford, but the atmosphere had changed.

The addition of Jack McCaffrey off the bench again lifts the crowd and Paul Mannion scores either side of a lovely Basquel effort drew level once more.

It was Mannion who set Dublin apart before substitute Dean Rock sealed the victory for Dessie Farrell’s men in additional time.

But it was Basquel who set the bar, his work rate on and off the ball defining the victory, having a hand in several crucial scores as well as contributing himself.

Counting the last three touches of the ball per attacking phase of possession, Basquel had the biggest influence with 90 percent of everything he touched resulting in a score.

Basquel electrified Croke Park at crucial moments, and with his massive effort, perhaps he was overlooked for the player of the match award – which went to Mannion for scoring 0- 5.

The former Gaelscoil Chnoc Liamhna student has had his best year in blue and is surely a shoo-in for his first All-Star.

While it was Basquel’s fourth time to lift Sam, it marks his first as a true starter and his clubmate Ross McGarry’s first time to earn a Celtic Cross.

Templeogue Synge Street duo Lorcan O’Dell and Killian O’Gara are now also first-time All-Ireland winners having helped Dublin throughout the season in pursuit of glory.

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