O'Byrne Cup Final/ Dublin 2-12 Longford 1-14:Pardon us for getting a little carried away here, but this was championship football way ahead of its time, complete with end-of-match pitch invasion.

A wildly entertaining and intensely competitive match that defied the title at stake. It could be several more months before we witness another match like it.

In the end, the result went as expected, and Dublin defended their O'Byrne Cup title, their seventh in all. But that is merely a footnote to a game that was dominated throughout by Longford, that should have been won by Longford, and was instead stolen from Longford.

They held what looked certain to be a winning advantage right up until the last minute, when a Jason Sherlock goal - his second of added time - gave Dublin the victory right at the death.

Dublin captain Alan Brogan could hardly contain a cheeky smile on lifting the cup, while the Longford team looked on in stunned resignation. They'd played so courageously over the 70 minutes that a victory was surely their right, yet Sherlock's two late goals - the first at the end of normal time, and the second at the end of injury-time - saw Dublin prove that age-old adage - it ain't over till it's over.

Sherlock was called into action on 43 minutes, at which stage Dublin knew they had a serious contest on their hands. Perhaps we'd underestimated the rivalry between these sides, especially since Dublin's narrow escape in the championship three years ago. Either way, Longford manager Luke Dempsey had his side fired up, and they came out shooting sawn-off shotguns.

Aiming everything into a two-man full forward line of Brian Kavanagh and Paul Barden, they hit 1-4 in the first seven minutes - with Kavanagh starting off with a beauty after just 15 seconds, deftly shot from the right, and adding a second on four minutes, this time from the left. It set the trend for the night.

Kavanagh's natural talent has been well documented, and his goal on seven minutes merely emphasised it. Fed with a fine pass from Francis McGee, he had his first shot well saved by John Leonard, but on catching the rebound, he made no mistake.

Dublin's first point, a minute earlier, highlighted the difference, as Brendan McManamon had to practically muscle his way into a scoring position.

So Longford were up 1-4 to 0-1, and Dublin looked ragged and panicked. Gradually, they calmed things down, Alan Brogan's neat pass to brother Bernard bringing their second point on 12 minutes. That was the exception.

With the crowd of around 6,000 now well warmed to the fiery contest, things never let up.

Longford captain Liam Keenan was ruled out from the start, yet Paddy Dowd used his size and speed to great effect, even if Longford were a little more limited at midfield, particularly under the high ball. Yet, they repeatedly put the Dublin defence under pressure, not only through Kavanagh and Barden, but also Declan Farrell, Francis McGee, and first half-replacement, Kevin Mulligan.

Dublin hit five first-half wides and that clearly didn't help their cause. Bryan Cullen, starting at wing forward, was rooted back in his own half, and Shane Ryan's early retirement just before half-time further reduced their challenge.

Still, they got back to within two at the break, 1-6 to 0-7.

Dublin started the second half intent on winning more possession, and initially that paid off - with John O'Brien's early free reducing the deficit to the minimum.

Still, Longford hit back with two points in succession, through McGee and a second from Mulligan, which suggested they could weather the storm.

And they did; reviving themselves as the game went into the decisive period. Dublin got back to within a point with just over 10 minutes remaining, but then Longford resumed the sort of attacking play they began with - hitting four points without reply.

Dowd was still running tirelessly and chipped over an excellent score, followed by a sweet exchange of passes and a point from Paul Barden.

Declan Farrell and David Barden added two more and it seemed certain Longford would get their deserved victory.

But Dublin weren't cooked yet - Sherlock moved closer to goal, and when Bernard Brogan's shot was saved just on 70 minutes Sherlock drove the rebound into the net - leaving it 1-13 to 1-12.

Longford responded again with a score from Kavanagh, and that looked to be it. Yet, with one more attack, Eamonn Fennell fired in the ball that again found Sherlock's trusted hands, and he drove the ball home. Goal!

What a finish, what a game, and we're still only talking about the O'Byrne Cup.

DUBLIN: J Leonard; D Henry, R McConnell, S O'Shaughnessy; P McMahon, P Casey, D Murray; E Fennell, S Ryan; B Cullen, A Brogan, B McManamon (0-1); J O'Brien (0-3, one free), B Brogan (0-7, five frees), K Bonner (0-1). Subs: D Lally for Ryan (33 mins, inj), J Sherlock (2-0)for Bonner (43 mins), C Moran for McMahon (45 mins), P Brogan for Murray (60 mins), N O'Shea for O'Brien (72 mins).

LONGFORD: D Sheridan; D Brady, D Masterson, D Reilly; S Mulligan, A O'Connor, N Farrell; P Dowd (0-1), E Farrell; D Barden (0-1), P Barden (0-1), P Berry; B Kavanagh (1-4), D Farrell (0-2), F McGee (0-3, two frees). Subs: K Mulligan (0-2)for Berry (23 mins).

Referee: M Deegan(Laois).