Dublin 0-12 Galway 1-9 Dublin's Allianz League season ended - just like last year's championship - with a narrowly missed free.
On this occasion the Leinster champions were the beneficiaries of the slip-up because had Galway replacement Tommy Joyce landed the injury-time kick, Dublin would have been on their way to some unfamiliar venues in next year's Division Two.
Instead the match finished level and it was Roscommon who took the tumble and Dublin, as well as surviving, extended a curious record against Galway, who have to go back over 20 years for their last competitive win in this fixture. It was the fourth time in five seasons that Dublin have pulled the result out of the fire in injury-time.
"Yes there was a good bit about that in the papers during the week," said Galway manager John O'Mahoney. "If we happen to meet later in the summer it will fill plenty of pages then as well," he added with a hint of asperity.
Yesterday at Parnell Park Galway looked as if they'd finally got the hang of it when taking a two-point lead into injury-time. But man of the match Alan Brogan intervened with his fifth and sixth points from plays to level the match.
So relief all around as both held on to their tenancies at the top. There will be plenty for each side to do in the weeks ahead before championship starts. The match was frequently scrappy and bedevilled by woeful distribution, including one first-half passage of play during which the sides returned the ball to each other as if they were playing tennis.
It was remarked in the aftermath that Dublin had settled a few outstanding scores from the under-21 final between the counties last October. Manager Tommy Lyons was quick to play down any unclaimed baggage from that awful occasion and pointed out that Paul Griffin, whom he rates as one of the finds of the campaign, had been outstanding marking Micheal Meehan - a feat Griffin repeated yesterday.
It was at the other end that the tables were most comprehensively turned. Alan Brogan had got little possession last autumn and was effectively marked by Micheal Comer. Yesterday after an early phase when Comer threatened an encore, Brogan took over and his constant threat was the thread on which Dublin's hopes hung for the afternoon. Six points from play is a good haul any day but when every one of them was so badly needed it was proof of an excellent display.
He received support from John McNally who kicked three points after the break but as a unit, the home attack was hesitant and exhibited poor shot selection and waywardness. Galway on the other hand looked top class in some of their forward movements. Matthew Clancy varied his usual, running game with some deft passes while Derek Savage's bristling threat in the right corner unsettled Dublin. As Lyons pointed out, Paddy Christie played well on Padhraic Joyce but there were times when his side were just hanging on.
Someone should have measured Alan Keane for Dublin before the match because the number of hopeful punts that the statuesque Galway 'keeper pulled down were triumphs of optimism over probability.
Nonetheless Dublin wouldn't have been unhappy to get to the interval only a point behind, 0-5 to 0-6. It could have been even better but Brian Cullen's point in preference to the chance of a goal was the reflection of an uncertain opening half for the youngster.
In the 48th minute the match lurched towards Galway. Matthew Clancy hit a probing ball into the danger area and although David Henry apparently had it covered, he lost possession to the predatory Savage who took his goal confidently to put five points between the teams. Such is Galway's infuriating wont, however, that the score inspired Dublin to new urgency and the Connacht champions to nap.
"Galway weren't killing us," said Lyons afterwards "not putting us away. When they scored the goal we went up and got a few great points to bring it back into a real game. Once they didn't break away any more than three points we still had a chance."
Lyons mentioned the constructive impact of his replacements Darren Homan and Jason Sherlock, but he was surely as pleased with the relentless pursuit of the result as with the happy ending.
DUBLIN: S Cluxton; D Henry, P Christie, P Griffin; C Moran, J Magee, C Goggins (0-1); C Whelan, D Magee; S Connell, S Ryan (0-1), B Cullen (0-1); A Brogan (0-6), R Cosgrove, J McNally (0-3). Subs: D Homan for Connell (52 mins), T Quinn for Cosgrove (59 mins), L O hEineachain for Ryan (66 mins), J Sherlock for D Magee (66 mins).
GALWAY: A Keane; T Meehan, G Fahey, M Comer; D Meehan, R Fahey, S de Paor; K Walsh, J Bergin (0-2); P Clancy, M Clancy (0-2), D O'Brien (0-1); D Savage (1-1), P Joyce (0-1, a free), M Meehan (0-2, two frees). Subs: T Joyce for P Clancy (71 mins).
Referee: B White (Wexford).
