All-Ireland SFC Quarter-final/Dublin v Westmeath: Saturday's match ended as a contest when Dublin's Tomás Quinn finished smartly for a well-taken goal. The game was 13 minutes old. Westmeath were obliged to play catch-up football, something the team is ill-equipped to do. That scenario was borne out for the remainder of the game, on an afternoon of sheer frustration for the losers.
Westmeath could really only muster what has to be considered a poor effort. Dublin manager Paul Caffrey would probably have preferred a slightly sterner examination but on Saturday his charges were again rampant, as they had been against Laois and Offaly.
In mitigation, Dublin can only beat what's put in front of them and they've done that with considerable élan, only Longford providing real substance in opposition. However, coaches and players traditionally learn more in adversity than they do when freewheeling.
Kerry coasted to an All-Ireland final with a series of facile victories last year only to come unstuck badly in the final. It's not that Caffrey would like to see his team securing victory in the 74th minute of a semi-final but Dublin need more rigorous testing of their current wellbeing. It's not a criticism of the Dubs, who once again cut a swathe through the opposition without hitting the high notes in scoring terms.
They enjoyed enough possession to probably double their tally of 1-12 but on the day it more than sufficed. On Saturday I ventured Paul Griffin would pick up Dessie Dolan, switching corners to do so, and while suggesting he was Dublin's best man-marker in that line on the pitch, even I didn't envisage the master class he offered in corner-back play.
He was technically brilliant, didn't commit a single foul and effectively shunted Dolan to the periphery of the contest. He was ably supported by David Henry and Barry Cahill, but as a test for the Dublin full-back line, it bordered on negligible.
The Westmeath forwards lived off scraps, and even when a few crumbs fell their way, the Dublin backs hoovered up. Bryan Cullen, the Rolls Royce of centre backs, again stood out but in truth no one's attitude or commitment could be faulted.
Dublin dominated midfield, rendering Rory O'Connell's retirement from the Westmeath colours all the more costly.
Physique, pace and fitness have underpinned Dublin's passage to this stage, and on Saturday it allowed them to dominate most of the personal duels in the air or on the ground.
The Dublin forwards were guilty of indiscriminate shooting at times, occasionally lacking the prescience to find a better-placed colleague.
Ray Cosgrove linked well, kicking a point, so I was surprised to see him substituted. He's a confidence player and one who'd benefit from sustained game time. The introduction of four forwards illustrated to some degree Dublin's unease, and not one of them scored, unlike their Kerry counterparts in the Armagh game.
For Westmeath boss Tomás Ó Flatharta there is the satisfaction of the work achieved in making the quarter-final but also the realisation of the distance still to be travelled to be truly competitive at this level.
The weekend's second quarter-final, between Mayo and Laois, was an open, entertaining affair without the punishing physicality one comes to expect at this level. Indeed, whichever team ultimately emerges victorious may suffer a rude awakening at Dublin's hands in that aspect of the game.
It's a cliché but a draw was probably a fair result. Laois threatened to pull away several times but Mayo showed the mental resolve that has become something of a trait this season.
Noel Garvan started at full forward, from where he kicked two fine points, but spent more of the match out around midfield, tagging on another excellent long-range effort.
Withdrawing him from the full-forward line allowed Mick O'Dwyer to introduce Donie Brennan, who kicked three points. Tactically it was an excellent gambit.
Mayo will rue the number of goal opportunities they allowed slip, a lack of composure and/or awareness costing them gilt-edged opportunities. Alan Dillon shot wildly and Billy Joe Padden - his work-rate was voracious - didn't spot better placed colleagues.
The Connacht champions were fortunate themselves when Brendan Quigley's low shot rebounded off a post.
A feature of the game was the number of short kick-outs by both teams, neither forward line killing themselves to close down that option - almost as if afraid of each other's fielding prowess around the pitch.
I presume Keith Higgins was injured, necessitating his withdrawal, because he was having a fine match on Beano McDonald. Ronan McGarrity's injury appeared serious and he would represent a huge loss to Mayo for the replay.
The duel between Conor Mortimer and Joe Higgins was a microcosm of the contest, both players playing well without negating each other's influence. Mortimer did superbly to win the free for the equalising point, no doubt drawing on his Connacht final experience to tap it over.
Both managers employed substitutes to good effect as fortunes ebbed and flowed, the tension of the final minutes difficult for both sets of supporters. It's whetted the appetite for the replay.
