THE ROAD TO CROKER: Dublin’s route to the All-Ireland SFC final

The Dublin senior footballers have beaten Laois, Meath, Westmeath, Donegal and Kerry to reach Sunday's All-Ireland SFC final against Mayo. Here dublingaa.ie looks back down the road to Croker and their games to date in the 2016 Leinster and All-Ireland SFC Series.

LEINSTER SFC QUARTER-FINAL

SATURDAY, JUNE 4: Nowlan Park, Kilkenny

DUBLIN 2-21 LAOIS 2-10

A good start is half the battle . . . . as so it proved to be as reigning Leinster and All-Ireland champions Dublin cruised into a provincial semi-final with victory over Laois at Nowlan Park, Kilkenny.

From the throw-in Brian Fenton delivered a long ball into the inside line which Dean Rock collected and angled on goal before slipping the ball past Laois keeper Graham Brody.

Four minutes later a brilliant kickout from Stephen Cluxton found James McCarthy breaking beyond midfield and he galloped forward before placed Diarmuid Connolly who expertly steered the ball to the net under the body of the advancing keeper Graham Brody.

Inside ten minutes Dublin were 2-4 to 0-1 clear much to the delight of their supporters, who must have outnumbered the Laois contingent about 15:1 among the 16,764 attendance.

The Dublin attack was moving well with Rock, Connolly and Ciaran Kilkenny especially to the fore and further points from Dean Rock (three, including two frees), Kilkenny and corner-back David Byrne had Jim Gavin's men 2-12 to 0-7 clear by the interval.

Laois lost John O'Loughlin to a straight red card in the 27 minute which typified their opening half as Dublin ruthlessly went to close the game off as early as possible.

However, the O'Moore County rallied despite the numerical inferiority in the second period.

Seven minutes into the second half Paul Cahillane beat Stephen Cluxton from the penaty spot and not long after wing-back Stephen Attride brilliantly fired to the net following good work by Kevin Meaney and Donie Kingston.

Dublin had become a bit shapeless at the back at this stage as they got drawn out of position with Laois capitalising on the counter-attack.

But the boys in blue settled again with two superb Diarmuid Connolly points and Rock added two more to wrestle back the momentum when moving 2-18 to 2-8 in front.

One of the largest cheers of the evening was reserved for Eoghan O'Gara's return to competitive action following his long layoff following his cruciate knee injury and subsequent surgery.

Con O'Callaghan, the shining forward on this year's U21 team, was also brought into the action for his senior championship debut and scored a point as well as superbly fetching a long delivery from Connolly before having his goal attempt smothered.

Late on Connolly was denied by Brody from the penalty as Dublin ran out 11-point victors and now face the winners of Meath v Louth in the Leinster semi-final in Croke Park on June 26.

SCORERS - Dublin: D Rock 1-10 (0-6f), D Connolly 1-4, C Kilkenny 0-4, D Byrne, K McManamon, C O'Callaghan 0-1 each. Laois: P Cahillane 1-2 (1-0 pen, 0-2f), S Attride 1-0, D Kingston 0-2 (0-1f), D O'Connor, D Strong, J O'Loughlin, G Walsh, K Meaney, R O'Connor 0-1 each.

DUBLIN: S Cluxton; P McMahon, J Cooper, D Byrne; J McCarthy, C O'Sullivan, J Small; B Fenton, MD Macauley; C Kilkenny, K McManamon, D Connolly; P Mannion, D Rock, B Brogan. Subs: D Bastick for Macauley (blood 28), Macauley for Bastick (45), M Fitzsimons for McMahon (45), C Costello for Brogan (51), C O'Callaghan for Mannion (56), D Daly for O'Sullivan (59), E Lowndes for Cooper (62), E O'Gara for Rock (63).

LAOIS: G Brody; M Timmons, P Cotter, S Attride; D O'Connor, D Strong, G Dillon; J O'Loughlin, B Quigley; E O'Carroll, P Cahillane, C Begley; D Kingston, G Walsh, C Meredith. Subs: K Meaney for O'Carroll (30), N Donoher for Walsh (ht), R Munnelly for Dillon (47), A Farrell for Cahillane (62), R O'Connor for Quigley (65), G Hanrahan for Cotter (65).

REF: C Brannigan (Down).

LEINSTER SFC SEMI-FINAL

SUNDAY, JUNE 26: Croke Park

DUBLIN 0-21 MEATH 0-11

Dublin strode into another Leinster final, where they will face Westmeath, following this comfortable provincial semi-final win over Meath at Croke Park.

Like in the quarter-final victory over Laois the accuracy of Dean Rock and Diarmuid Connolly was central to Dublin's victory against a defensive-minded Royal County.

Meath started the better and led 0-3 to 0-1 inside ten minutes they also had an early goal-scoring opportunity but first Stephen Cluxton and then David Byrne denied Dalton McDonagh.

Goal-scoring chances were few and far between as Meath deployed Pádraic Harnan in front of their own full-back line to cut out the shortest route to goal.

It was a tactic that was successful in denying the Dubs of a goal for the game but Meath failed up front to really cause Dublin too many problems after their early scoring flurry - they only scored three points in the second half with the last of these coming from sub Ronan Jones deep in injury-time.

After their slow start two Dean Rock frees in the 12th and 14th minute had Dublin level before great interplay culminated in a fine Brian Fenton point to put Dublin ahead.

Dublin continued to hold the upperhand but at times were struggling to show their usual accuracy into a difficult wind.

Points from Paul Flynn, following good work by Connolly and Kevin McManamon, and Bernard Brogan nosed Dublin 0-7 to 0-4 clear by the 23rd minute.

By the interval Dublin led 0-11 to 0-8 and looked comfortable enough with wind advantage to come.

Dublin restarted well with two Rock points, one a free, and before the midpoint of the half further scores from Brogan and two more from Rock, the second a free following a foul on Paul Flynn had Jim Gavin's men 0-16 to 0-9 clear by the 50th minute.

Before the finish Dublin were able to call the likes of Bernard Brogan and Kevin McManamon ashore as Meath never looked set to carry and significant threat as Dublin progressed to their 11th provincial final in 12 summers.

SCORERS - Dublin: D Rock 0-10 (0-9f), D Connolly 0-4, B Brogan 0-3, P Flynn 0-2, P Mannion, B Fenton 0-1 each. Meath: M Newman 0-4 (0-3f), G Reilly 0-3, C O'Sullivan 0-2 (0-1f), E Wallace, R Jones 0-1 each.

DUBLIN: S Cluxton; P McMahon, J Cooper, D Byrne; J McCarthy, C O'Sullivan, J Small; B Fenton, D Bastick; P Flynn, K McManamon, C Kilkenny; D Rock, D Connolly, B Brogan. Subs: MD Macauley for Bastick (ht), P Mannion for Brogan (53), P Andrews for McManamon (58), E Lowndes for Small (60), M Fitzsimons for O'Sullivan (63), C O'Callaghan for Flynn (67).

MEATH: P O'Rourke; D Tobin, D Keogan, M Burke; D Smyth, P Harnan, A Douglas; H Rooney, C O'Brien, G Reilly, C O'Sullivan, E Wallace; D McDonagh, A Tormey, M Newman. Subs: R Jones for Tormey (53), S Lavin for E Wallace (54),S Tobin for McDonagh (60), J Wallace for Reilly (63), C Finn for Douglas (67), B McMahon for O'Sullivan (67).

REF: R Hickey (Clare).

LEINSTER SFC FINAL

SUNDAY, JULY 17: Croke Park

DUBLIN 2-19 WESTMEATH 0-10

A storming second half saw Dublin secure their sixth Leinster SFC in-a-row and equal the record for the county set by the 1970s Super Dubs who dominated the province from 1974 to 1979.

The opening half was a tactical battle and Westmeath's deployment of a double-sweeper strategy made for a dull enough contest but ultimately successful in frustrating the Dublin attack.

Jim Gavin's men carried a 0-7 to 0-6 advantage into the break but could be far from happy as they failed to unlock the Westmeath defence while they also struggled at times on the breaking ball around centrefield.

However, Dean Rock's flawless freetaking helped Dublin into that half-time lead as he converted four from four attempts.

The Dubs made a tactical adjustment at the break by moving Ciaran Kilkenny back to the half-back line thereby freeing him up as his direct opponent, Francis Boyle, was operating as one of Westmeath's sweepers.

Also Paddy Andrews was introduced into the fray but overall Dublin upped the tempo of their game and moved the ball with far more potency and pace.

The scores began to come and soon Dublin were motoring well and they never looked back.

Inside the first minute of the second half the impressive Bernard Brogan fired over and then Rock added his firth free before Bernard made it 0-10 to 0-6 following good work by Ciarán Kilkenny in the 40th minute.

Kevin McManamon was a far influential figure in the second half as the St Jude's man began to create overlaps and burrow holes in the Westmeath rearguard.

Points from McManamon, Bernard Brogan off his left, two Rock frees, Diarmuid Connolly, Rock again and the hard-working John Small made it 0-17 to 0-7 by the 55th minute.

Dublin's first goal arrived three minutes later - a superb move initiated by Stephen Cluxton who caught a Westmeath point effort and set in motion an excellent move by finding Ciarán Kilkenny with a 50-metre pass that concluded in clever interplay by Jonny Cooper and Brian Fenton for Brogan to palm to the net.

In the 69th minute Kevin McManamon played a one-two with Paul Mannion before picking his spot and beating Darren Quinn from 14 metres - a great ending to a much improved second half.

SCORERS – Dublin: D Rock 0-8 (0-8f), B Brogan 1-4, K McManamon 1-2, P Andrews 0-2, J Small, P Flynn, D Connolly 0-1 each. Westmeath: J Heslin 0-6 (0-5f), G Egan 0-2, D Corroon, C McCormack 0-1 each.

DUBLIN: S Cluxton; J Cooper, D Byrne, P McMahon; J Small, C O’Sullivan, E Lowndes; B Fenton, MD Macauley; P Flynn, C Kilkenny, D Connolly; K McManamon, D Rock, B Brogan. Subs: P Andrews for Lowndes (ht), C O’Callaghan for Macauley (48), D Bastick for Connolly (52), D Daly for Small (56), M Fitzsimons for O’Sullivan (60), P Mannion for Rock (63).

WESTMEATH: D Quinn; K Daly, F Boyle, J Conoud; K Maguire, J Dolan, D Lynch; D Corroon, G Egan; A Stone, P Sharry, R Connellan; J Heslin, K Martin, C McCormack. Subs: D Daly for R Connellan (35 inj), S Corcoran for Lynch (53), S Duncan for K Daly (55), J Connellan for Martin (59), D McNicholas for Sharry (65).

REF: F Kelly (Longford).

ALL-IRELAND SFC QUARTER-FINAL

SATURDAY, AUGUST 6: Croke Park

DUBLIN 1-15 DONEGAL 1-10

Dublin booked their berth in their seventh All-Ireland SFC semi-final in-a-row with this five-point victory over Donegal in Croke Park in front of a full-house of 82,300.

The Dubs held the upperhand for most of the game but had to battle to the finish with the sending off of Diarmuid Connolly (45th minute) and in the dying minutes Eoghan O'Gara seeing them progress despite Donegal's numerical superiority.

Jim Gavin's men now face Kerry on August 28 in a repeat of last year's final as they attempt to defend the Sam Maguire.

Dublin led 0-9 to 0-4 at the break and it could have been more.

Diarmuid Connolly struck two sublime first half points, one of either foot from long-range, but spurned two first half goal chances which would nearly have had Dublin out of sight by the interval.

Dublin v Donegal - GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship - Quarter-Final

The attack was functioning well despite Donegal's defensive tactics with Dean Rock composed on the frees while Paddy Andrews slotted one first half point from a very difficult angle.

Dublin's defence also stood strong with deadball situations Donegal's primary source of scores while Ciarn Kilkenny controlled the tempo of the game from the middle sector.

The Dubs restarted the second half well with the highly influential Kevin McManamon on the mark and soon after Dean Rock converted a free following hard graft by his Ballymun Kickhams club-mate John Small.

Paddy McBrearty replied with a Donegal point before disaster struck for Dublin - a misplaced Cian O'Sullivan foot pass conceded possession and the Ulster men swarmed forward concluding with Ryan McHugh palming the ball to the net.

Suddenly it was a three-point game - 0-11 to 1-5 - despite Dublin's dominance.

Dean Rock steadied Dublin will a fine free before the second whammy to Dublin's chances when Diarmuid Connolly was dismissed in the 45th minute.

With ten minutes of normal time left Kevin McManamon, off his left, pushed Dublin 0-13 to 1-6 clear.

Four minutes earlier Paul Mannion had been introduced as a sub and he was to have a telling impact over the conclusion of the game.

The Kilmacud Crokes man fired a point and late on settled any Dublin nerves with a superb goal and he carved his way through the Donegal defence before sliding the ball low to the net as Dublin's great show of character saw them progress to a meeting with the Kingdom.

SCORERS - Dublin: D Rock 0-5 (0-4f, 0-1 '45'), P Mannion 1-1, K McManamon 0-3, D Connolly 0-2, C Kilkenny, P McMahon, P Andrews, J Cooper 0-1 each. Donegal: M Murphy 0-6 (0-5f, 0-1 '45'), R McHugh 1-0, P McBrearty 0-3 (0-2f), A Thompson 0-1.

DUBLIN: S Cluxton; P McMahon, J Cooper, D Byrne; C Kilkenny, C O'Sullivan, J Small; B Fenton, MD Macauley; P Flynn, K McManamon, D Connolly; D Rock, P Andrews, B Brogan. Subs: D Daly for Brogan (48 mins), D Bastick for Macauley (53), P Mannion for Andrews (56), E O'Gara for McManamon (68), E Lowndes for Rock (73), M Fitzsimnons for Fenton (bc, 76).

DONEGAL: M McGinley; P McGrath, N McGee, E McGee; R McHugh, K Lacey, F McGlynn; R Kavanagh, O MacNiallais;A Thompson, M McElhinney, E McHugh; P McBrearty, M Murphy, M O'Reilly. Subs: C Gillespie for MacNiallais (ht), L McCloone for Kavanagh (42), C Toye for Thomson (46), C Thompson for McElhinney (61), C McFadden for Lacey (71).

REF: C Branagan (Down).

ALL-IRELAND SFC SEMI-FINAL

SUNDAY, AUGUST 28: Croke Park

DUBLIN 0-22 KERRY 2-14

The Dubs and the Kingdom have served up some of the most fabled duels over the years and this All-Ireland SFC semi-final was another epic game for the ages.

Jim Gavin's men led 0-9 to 0-4 by the 24th minute and were well in control of the game but by the break were 2-8 to 0-9 in arrears after Kerry had shocked them with 2-4 without reply.

It proved to be only a temporary blip in the Dublin defence who for the most part defended heroically in the face of some great Kerry interplay and movement.

Time and again the likes of Jonny Cooper provided a high-wire act as the timing of his interceptions was perfect to help his team out of what looked tricky situations.

In the 30th minute Kerry pressured Dublin on their kickout and then quickly transferred the ball for Darran O'Sullivan to fire to the net and disaster struck again for the Dubs before half-time when Paul Geaney got a flick on Anthony Maher's point effort dropping short and the ball was adjudged to have crossed the line by ref David Gough's umpires at the Hill 16 end.

Before the interval Colm Cooper tagged on a free to see the Kerry boys enter the break in ecstatic fashion and five points to the good.

While the walls might have looked to have caved in on the Dubs a strong restart to the second period was imperative.

They got out of the blocks well with deadball expert Dean Rock, who contributed a massive 0-12 (0-8f, 0-2 '45'), converting a 37th minute free after his Ballymun Kickhams club-mate John Small had been fouled.

Bernard Brogan fisted over following good work by Diarmuid Connolly and David Byrne and a fine Rock point from play in the 40th minute added to Dublin's momentum.

The Gooch halted the rising blue tide with a free but a Rock free and '45' was followed by a super Brian Fenton point off his left to bring the sides level 0-15 to 2-9 in the 50th minute.

However, Dublin could not edge in front and Kerry bounded back with points from BJ Keane, Geaney and James O'Donoghue to go three clear.

It set up a pulsating ending to the game and once again it was the Dubs who staged the grandstand finish.

Philly McMahon, Rock (two) and the tireless Kevin McManamon had Dublin in front 0-20 to 2-13 by the 70th minute but it was only momentarily as Stephen O'Brien equalised and a replay loomed large.

But Dublin continued to drive forward and were rewarded with two brilliant late, late scores from Eoghan O'Gara and Diarmuid Connolly to seal victory and see the Dubs record their fourth senior championship victory in-a-row against Kerry.

SCORERS - Dublin: D Rock 0-12 (0-8f, 0-2 '45'), D Connolly 0-3, K McManamon, B Brogan 0-2 each, P McMahon, B Fenton, E O'Gara 0-1 each. Kerry: P Geaney 1-4, C Cooper 0-5 (0-4f), D O'Sullivan 1-0, D Moran, P Murphy, S O'Brien, J O'Donoghue, BJ Keane 0-1 each.

DUBLIN: S Cluxton; J Cooper, P McMahon, D Byrne; J McCarthy, C O'Sullivan, J Small; B Fenton, MD Macauley; P Flynn, D Connolly, C Kilkenny, K McManamon, D Rock, B Brogan. Subs: P Andrews for Flynn (46), P Mannion for Small (50), E O’Gara for MacAuley (60), M Fitzsimons for Cooper (67), C Costello for Brogan (71).

KERRY: B Kelly; S Enright; M Griffin, K Young; A O'Mahony, P Crowley,T Morley; A Maher D Moran; P Murphy, D O'Sullivan, D Walsh; P Geaney, K Donaghy, C Cooper. Subs: S O’Brien for O’Sullivan (39), J O’Donoghue for Donaghy (50), B.J. Keane for Walsh (52), B Ó Beaglaoich for Morley (56), B Sheehan for Maher (58), M Ó Sé for Geaney (67).

REF: D Gough (Meath).