It all ended in a typical Kerry heist. For years footballing lore has held that the sport's brand-leaders are always capable of slipping through and conjuring an All-Ireland from less-than-promising circumstances.

So it was on Saturday in Limerick's Gaelic Grounds when having been outplayed for long periods and, even on their own admission, cleaned out at centrefield, the Munster champions emerged at the end of an interesting All-Ireland under-21 final with the title in their pockets for the third time in four years.

So it has been all season. The team was relatively unheralded at the start of championship, attracting little enthusiasm in the county although a handful of medallists from two years ago remained at the team's disposal. All along they have enjoyed extraordinarily productive openings to their matches and the final was no exception.

Laois people morosely acknowledged that they had kicked away a great opportunity to capture a first All-Ireland at this grade. The wides count in the second half - seven to Kerry's one - constituted damning confirmation of the self-criticism.

But even allowing for the nervous prodigality that left the losers stuttering for nearly 10 minutes in the final quarter just one point behind a besieged Kerry, it was the concession of two soft goals in the first 20 minutes that dug most of the earth out of the midlanders' grave.

For all the Kerry self-deprecation, no-one in the crowd of 7,120 could argue that the success was founded on very conventional virtues of tight, feisty and disciplined defending - full back Tom O'Sullivan particularly impressive - and commendable economy up front (more so in the second half than in the first). Laois ruled the supply-lines but their finishing was poor whereas both goals came from concentration lapses at the back.

It was a hard lesson for the talented Leinster team whose reputation arises from three excellent years at minor level, culminating in the two most recent All-Irelands. Eleven of the side will again be available next year but many's the under-21 veteran who never got closer than in their first year.

Apparently oblivious to Kerry's progress to the final (two goals in the opening minutes against Tipperary in the Munster final, for example), Laois contrived to lose the ball at the back to Michael F Russell on Kerry's first attack. The only medallist from last September's senior success had a fine match overall, threatening some mischief whenever he had possession.

He set the tone in the first minute by carrying the gifted possession in on goal and teeing up his captain Brian Scanlon for the opening goal. There were just 25 seconds on the clock. Frees from Aodan MacGearailt (later to add a beautiful sideline point) and Pa O'Sullivan pushed the advantage to five points by the 11th minute and Laois weren't even on the board.

Colm Parkinson popped up from wing back to open their account with a fine long-range point and the gap was narrowed further by Beano McDonald's virtuoso effort from the right wing. Just as the assumption was developing that Laois had overcome their jittery start, Kerry struck again when Eamonn Fitzmaurice snapping a breaking ball in the goalmouth and slipping it into the net.

Wides were a feature of both sides' play in the first half but Laois could afford them less. A run of three scores towards the interval helped Laois limit the damage but they still trailed in 0-5 to 2-4 behind.

Laois began the second half with fiery intent and four unanswered points. Ian Fitzgerald got the first, the only score of his five-point haul from play on an afternoon which will have featured too many wides to have lived up to his high standards. Gregory Ramsbottom, Fitzgerald again and Chris Conway, a dynamic and physical presence on the wing, with his his second free, narrowed the gap to a point only six minutes into the second half.

Brosnan stretched the lead again and Laois's wides' tally continued to mount and presumably the pressure with it. Although Fitzgerald had restored the balance to one point, the defining moment came in the 50th minute when substitute Stephen Kelly got through the defence but saw his shot come back off the post. McDonald followed up but was beaten by an alert David Moloney in the Kerry goal.

Laois weren't to know - although they might have suspected as much - but their collective bolt had been shot. No more scores came until injury-time by which stage Russell had kicked a pressure free, O'Sullivan followed up with another (although there had been claims for a penalty after the generally subdued Noel Kennelly was brought down) and the two Laune Rangers' clubmen combined for Kerry's final score of the afternoon.

Fitzgerald's closing contribution was a free that also excited prospects of a penalty but the pick-up off the ground was outside the area.

A happy man in the aftermath was Jack O'Connor, trainer of the winners, who gave up being a senior selector after last year's All-Ireland in order to concentrate on the under21s.

"Ten minutes into the second half, you couldn't see us winning. If they had got level or gone ahead, it would have been curtains but we pulled it out of the fire."