The Wait's Finally Over For Dublin

GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Final: Dublin 1-12 Kerry 1-11

Dublin ended their long wait for an All-Ireland title in the most dramatic circumstances imaginable, as goalkeeper Stephen Cluxton kicked the winning point in added time to ensure Sam Maguire stays in the capital for the first time in 16 years.

Pat Gilroy's side trailed by four points with seven minutes left and looked set for further heartache, but they dug deep and defied the odds to pull off a stirring comeback in the closing stages.

Just when it looked like their race was run, second half sub Kevin McManamon scored a brilliant goal seven minutes from the end. When Kevin Nolan followed it up with the equalizing point with five minutes left, the momentum had suddenly and dramatically swung in their favour.

Inevitably, Kerry came back, but the Dublin defence stood firm, showed remarkable discipline in the tackle - having given away far too many frees in the 15 minutes before that - and moved the ball down the other end of the field, where Diarmuid Connolly's industry opened up space for Bernard Brogan to land his sixth point of the game.

But there was more drama to come... Kieran Donaghy looked to have sent the game to a replay when he dropped over a monster of a point from play a minute into added time. The script was written, it appeared, and it looked like Kerry would spoil the Dubs' big day.

They hadn't reckoned with the resolve and the character that Gilroy's side now have in abundance. They went for the win, sensing the chance to make heroes of themselves. And how they did.

McManamon was still full of running in the tension-filled, dying minutes and he was rewarded for his industry when he was awarded a free just inside the '45. Cluxton, who has experienced more heartache than most in his 10 seasons in the Sky Blue jersey, stood up and fulfilled a Dublin dream that was 16 years in the making.

"We've been to hell and back this year," Dublin captain Bryan Cullen said when he became the first Dublin captain since John O'Leary to lift the Sam Maguire Cup.

This was a taste of heaven, Dublin's 23rd All-Ireland title and their first win over their great rivals Kerry in the Championship since 1977. For Kerry, there is bitter taste of a second year without an All-Ireland title for the first time since 2003 and further question marks over whether this is the end of the team that has dominated the game for the last decade.

Those questions probably do an injustice to Dublin, who can now become a real force after winning an All-Ireland title with a side that is young in years and lacking big game experience. Not that it showed. Gilroy's players have always had question marks hanging over them since they were destroyed by 17 points by Kerry in the 2009 All-Ireland final.

This, though, is a very different team both in character and confidence. When everyone in Croke Park expected them to capitulate in the last 10 minutes, they came back stronger, calling on the spirit that saw them beat Donegal in similarly trying circumstances.

Kerry made their first incision in the Dublin defence inside the second minute. Darran O'Sullivan's searing pace was key, as the Glenbeigh man created space for Declan O'Sullivan - stationed at full- forward - to fist over the bar.

Dublin's defending was typically intense in the opening 10 minutes, with Nolan making a vital interception in the eighth minute when Donnchadh Walsh was played through on goal.

Having soaked up the early pressure, Dublin went in search of scores and it was their most experienced player, Alan Brogan, who came up trumps, sending over two points from play to nudge Dublin into the lead.

However, on 19 minutes Kerry scored the kind of goal they are always capable of.

Darran O'Sullivan lit the touchpaper with another jet-heeled run, shifting into top gear and racing through Dublin's defence before picking out Kerry's supreme finisher, Cooper, who picked his spot brilliantly, giving Cluxton no chance.

Tight to this point, suddenly gaps started opening at either end. Kerry goalkeeper Brendan Kealy had to make a brilliant save to deny Alan Brogan, who had been played in by his brother, Bernard's clever knock down.

Two minutes later, and it was Kerry's turn to cause havoc in the Dublin defence. Donaghy, who started at wing-forward, switched with Declan O'Sullivan on the edge of the square and was found with a superb, diagonal ball. Donaghy beat Rory O'Carroll to the high ball and turned sharply, but his shot was blocked by a last-gasp Cian O'Sullivan touch.

Paul Galvin had been brought into the Kerry attack for Kieran O'Leary at this stage, but his entrance didn't seem to have the effect manager Jack O'Connor would have hoped. Indeed, Dublin hit three points in a row to take over. Bernard Brogan struck a brilliant score from play and added a free, while Cluxton also landed a free from nearly 50 yards out.

Dublin led by 0-6 to 1-1 when Galvin made his first real impression, sweeping up the loose ball after Bryan Sheehan's free fell short and popping over the bar to leave one between the sides at half-time.

Denis Bastick had Dublin three points clear within five minutes of the restart, but it was then that the Kingdom began to click, hitting four points in a row to reclaim the lead by the 50th minute.

Bernand Brogan briefly arrested the slide with a point from a free, but it was then that Kerry landed another four points without replay in a nine-minute spell, Bryan Sheehan punishing Dublin's indiscipline with a string of frees, while Colm Cooper dropped over two more points, the second ensuring he finished as top scorer in the 2011 Championship.

It was then that Dublin did what was least expected of them, as McManamon's goal sparked a never-to-be-forgotten comeback that culminated in Cluxton kicking the winning point in added time.