It is an anomaly for any sporting showdown to produce two winners but in the conflicted history of GAA’s greatest behemoths, one game’s true final result has yet to be gleaned. Although Kerry rightfully beat their age old adversaries Dublin in a humiliating 17 point defeat in the 2009 Quarter Final, the Dubs left the pitch with perhaps an even greater victory. Buoyed on the crest of the wave they had been riding through an uncontested championship, the boys in blue were unwittingly awarded a priceless gift from their vanquishers; the possibility of redemption.
Source: http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/football/2009/0803/252816-matchtracker/
It was August Bank Holiday when a confident Dublin welcomed their southern rivals onto the hallowed turf of Croke Park. Many expected the home side to slide through an easy seventy minutes against a struggling Kerry, who had thus far scraped their way through the back door after a crushing Cork defeat in the Munster Final and barely beating Sligo and Longford in the qualifiers. It was to be the day the mighty Leinster Champions paid respect to an aging Kerry side but ultimately annihilate them in their quest for the Sam. The Dubs has waited 32 years to better Kerry in a championship and the wait was soon to be over.
But almost immediately, the pre written script changed. The very first touch of the ball went into Kerry control and resulted in an unprecedented goal from Colm ‘The Gooch’ Cooper in just 36 seconds of play; the first goal Dublin had conceded in the championship.
With such a confident and intimidating opener from the Kingdom, Dublin crumbled; only managing three points in the first half to Kerry’s 1-14. The final tally of 1-24 to 1-07 secured a place in the semis for Kerry who went on to the win for the title for the 35th time. But for Dublin, it was to mark a turnaround in how they approached the game. Manager Pat Gilroy conducted the biggest cull of the squad since 2002 and adopted a more defence focused style of play. Since that fateful day the sides have faced each other seven times, with Dublin securing six of those seven victories; proving that when it comes to Kerry, old grudges die hard. Two years later in 2011 the Dubs would have their revenge in a single point victory in the Final, bringing the Sam to the capital for the first time in sixteen years. A second win two years later put them on par with the reigning champs for All Ireland titles since the 2009 massacre.
It can be argued that for any sports star to achieve their true potential, they need to have an opponent of equal strength and skill. Without Jake LaMotta, would Sugar Ray Robinson have commanded the boxing world for nine years? Would there be a Red Sox without the Yankees? Wimbledon champion John McEnroe once stated that his professional life was never so much fun again once his rival Bjorn Borg hung up his racket. And this is why, whether they care to admit it or not, Dublin and Kerry need each other; and why when two teams push each other to the absolute extremities of their capabilities, there truly can be no loser.
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