2017 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final

The 2017 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final, the 130th event of its kind and the culmination of the 2017 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, was played at Croke Park in Dublin on 17 September 2017.[1][2]

2017 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final
Event2017 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
Date17 September 2017
VenueCroke Park, Dublin
Man of the MatchJames McCarthy
RefereeJoe McQuillan (Cavan)
Attendance82,243
Weather16 °C, fine
2016
2018

The final was the fourth occasion that the two counties met in the final, following matches in 1921, 2013 and 2016. Prior to the game, Dublin were seeking their third consecutive All-Ireland title, while Mayo were aiming for their first All-Ireland since 1951. The same two counties played in the ladies' All-Ireland final. This was only the second time that the final pairing had been the same in the men's and ladies' championships; the first time was in 1982, when Kerry played Offaly in the men's and ladies' finals. It was the second consecutive year that a team qualified under the system of second chances introduced in 2001; Mayo played despite defeat in its provincial championship.

Dublin won the final by a point on a 1–17 to 1–16 scoreline to claim their third title in a row, the first time this has happened since 1921–23.[3][4][5]

The final was played before a capacity attendance of 82,243 people. The match drew a peak audience of 1.3 million, which made it the most watched RTÉ broadcast of 2017, surpassing the hurling final.[6] The following year, Martin Breheny listed this as the fourth greatest All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final.[7]

The game was televised nationally on RTÉ2 as part of The Sunday Game live programme, presented by Michael Lyster from Croke Park, with studio analysis from Joe Brolly, Pat Spillane, and Colm O'Rourke.[8] Match commentary was provided by Ger Canning with analysis by Dessie Dolan. The game was also televised internationally by Sky Sports, presented by Rachel Wyse and Brian Carney.

Paths to the final

edit

The two teams had widely varying paths to the final. Whereas Mayo struggled (losing to Galway, needing extra time to beat Derry and Cork and replays to beat Roscommon and Kerry), Dublin breezed to the final, winning their five games by 12, 31, 9, 10 and 12 points respectively.

Mayo

edit
Mayo  2–14 – 0–11  Sligo
Cillian O’Connor 1–6 (0-5f), Diarmuid O’Connor 1–0, Fergal Boland and Andy Moran 0–2 each, Patrick Durcan, Kevin McLoughlin, Jason Doherty, Danny Kirby 0–1 each Report Adrian Marren 0–4 (0-2f, 1 '45), Mark Breheny (0-2f) and Stephen Coen 0–2 each, Aidan Devaney (0-1f), Paddy O'Connor, Niall Murphy 0–1 each
Attendance: 14,661
Referee: Sean Hurson (Tyrone)
Galway  0–15 – 1–11  Mayo
Sean Armstong 0–6 (3f, 3 '45), Damien Comer 0–2, G Sice 0–2 (2f), G Bradshaw, Johnny Heaney, Shane Walsh, Michael Daly, Eamonn Brannigan 0–1 each. Report Cillian O'Connor 0–6 (5f), Kevin McLoughlin 1–1, P Durcan, Fergal Boland, Diarmuid O'Connor, Andy Moran 0–1 each.
Attendance: 22,046
Referee: Joe McQuillan (Cavan)
Qualifier Round 2A
Mayo  2–21 – 1–13
(AET)
  Derry
Cillian O’Connor 0–12 (0-9f, 1 '45); Conor Loftus 1–1, Jason Doherty 1–1, Andy Moran 0–2, Kevin McLoughlin, Aidan O’Shea, Diarmuid O’Connor, Lee Keegan, Patrick Durcan 0–1 each Report Niall Loughlin 0–6 (5f), Mark Lynch 1–1, Ryan Bell 0–3, Benny Heron, James Kielt, Danny Heavron 0–1 each
Attendance: 11,433
Referee: M Deegan (Laois)
Qualifier Round 3A
Mayo  2–14 – 0–13  Clare
Cillian O’Connor 1–5 (5f), Diarmuid O’Connor 1–1, Andy Moran 0–3, Kevin McLoughlin 0–2, Lee Keegan, Keith Higgins, and Aidan O’Shea 0–1 each Report David Tubridy 0–4 (4fs), Eoin Cleary 0–3 (2fs), Keelan Sexton 0–2 (1 45), Jamie Malone, Sean Collins, Gary Brennan, and Gearoid O’Brien 0–1 each
Attendance: 11,576
Referee: Sean Hurson (Tyrone)
Qualifier Round 4A
Mayo  0–27 – 2–20
(AET)
  Cork
Cillian O’Connor 0–11 (0-4f, 1 '45), Andy Moran 0–4, Aidan O’Shea 0–3, Patrick Durcan and Conor Loftus 0–2 each, Keith Higgins, Lee Keegan, Tom Parsons, Diarmuid O'Connor, Jason Doherty 0–1 each Report Donncha O'Connor 0–6 (0-4f), Luke Connolly 1–1 (0-1f), Sean Powter 1–0, John O'Rourke, Paul Kerrigan, Colm O'Neill (0-1f) 0–3 each, Michael Hurley 0–2, Tomas Clancy and Barry O'Driscoll 0–1 each
Attendance: 13,505
Referee: Ciaran Branagan (Down)
All-Ireland Quarter-final
Mayo  1–12 – 2–9  Roscommon
Lee Keegan 1–3, Cillian O'Connor 0–3 (0-2f), Patrick Durcan and Andy Moran 0–2 each, Colm Boyle and Jason Doherty 0–1 each Report Ciaran Murtagh 1–2 (0-2f), Fintan Cregg 1–1, Diarmuid Murtagh and Donie Smith (0-1f) 0–2 each, Enda Smith and Conor Devaney 0–1 each
Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 65,746
Referee: Joe McQuillan (Cavan)
All-Ireland Quarter-final Replay
Mayo  4–19 – 0–9  Roscommon
Cillian O’Connor 1–6 (0-5f), Andy Moran 1–1, Keith Higgins and Kevin McLoughlin 1–0 each, Aidan O’Shea, Jason Doherty, Shane Nally 0–2 each, Donal Vaughan, Chris Barrett, Tom Parsons, Diarmuid O’Connor, David Drake, Stephen Coen 0–1 each Report Diarmuid Murtagh 0–4 (0-2f), Sean Mullooly, Enda Smith, Niall Kilroy, Conor Devaney, Donie Smith 0–1 each
Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 39,154
Referee: Anthony Nolan (Wicklow)
All-Ireland Semi-final
Mayo  2–14 – 2–14  Kerry
Andy Moran 1–5, Cillian O’Connor 0–4 (0-1f), Colm Boyle 1–0, Tom Parsons 0–2, Donal Vaughan, Jason Doherty, Patrick Durcan 0–1 each Report [1] Paul Geaney 0–7 (0-4f), Johnny Buckley, Stephen O’Brien 1–0 each, James O’Donoghue 0–3 (0-2f), Killian Young, Paul Murphy, Kieran Donaghy, Barry John Keane 0–1 each
Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 66,195
All-Ireland Semi-final Replay
Mayo  2–16 – 0–17  Kerry
Cillian O'Connor 0-6f, Andy Moran 1–1, Diarmuid O'Connor 1–0, Jason Doherty 0–3 (0-1f, 1 '45), Kevin McLoughlin and Conor Loftus 0–2 each, Chris Barrett and Patrick Durcan 0–1 each Report Paul Geaney 0–9 (0-7f), James O'Donoghue 0–3 (0-1f), Jack Barry, Jonathan Lyne, Johnny Buckley, Fionn Fitzgerald 0–1 each
Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 53,032
Referee: David Gough (Meath)

Dublin

edit
3 June 2017
19:00
Leinster Quarter-final
Dublin   0–19 – 0–7   Carlow O'Moore Park, Portlaoise
Attendance: 13,238
Referee: Sean Hurson (Tyrone)
Man of the Match: Sean Murphy
Dean Rock 0-6f, Ciaran Kilkenny 0–3, Jack McCaffrey, Con O’Callaghan (0-2f), Bernard Brogan 0–2 each, Niall Scully, Paul Mannion, Diarmuid Conolly (1 '45), Conor McHugh 0–1 each Report Paul Broderick 0-3f, Danny Moran, Brendan Murphy, Sean Murphy, Darragh Foley (0-1f) 0–1 each

25 June 2017
4:00 pm
Leinster Semi-final
Dublin   4–29 – 0–10   Westmeath Croke Park
Attendance: 33,370
Referee: Conor Lane (Cork)
Man of the Match: Paul Mannion
Dean Rock 1–5 (0-3f, 2 '45), Paul Mannion 0–8, Ciaran Kilkenny 1–3, Kevin McManamon 1–1, Con O’Callaghan 0–3, Eoghan O’Gara 1–0, Brian Fenton, Paddy Andrews, Bernard Brogan (0-1f), Shane B. Carthy 0–2 each, Jack McCaffrey 0–1. Report John Heslin 0–4 (0-3f), Kieran Martin 0–3, John Egan 0–2, Ger Egan 0–1

16 July 2017
4:00 pm
Leinster Final
Dublin   2–23 – 1–17   Kildare Croke Park
Attendance: 66,734
Referee: Anthony Nolan (Wicklow)
Man of the Match: Con O'Callaghan
Con O’Callaghan 0–12 (0-6f), Bernard Brogan 0–5, James McCarthy, Dean Rock 1–0 each, Ciaran Kilkenny 0–2, Paul Mannion, Paddy Andrews, Shane B. Carthy, Brian Howard 0–1 each Report Paddy Brophy 1–3 (0-1f), Kevin Feely 0–5 (0-4f), Daniel Flynn and Cathal McNally 0–2 each, Johnny Byrne, Keith Cribbin, Niall Kelly, David Slattery, Fionn Dowling 0–1 each

5 August
6:00 pm
All-Ireland Quarter-final
Dublin   1–19 – 0–12   Monaghan Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 82,000
Referee: Conor Lane (Cork)
Man of the Match: Dean Rock
Dean Rock 1–8 (0-7f, 1 '45), Paul Mannion and Paddy Andrews 0–3 each, James McCarthy, Con O’Callaghan, Jack McCaffrey, Paul Flynn, Eoghan O’Gara 0–1 each Report Conor McManus 0–4 (0-3f), Conor McCarthy 0–3, Rory Beggan (0-1f), Colin Walshe, Karl O’Connell, Darren Hughes, Ryan McAnespie 0–1 each

27 August
4:00 pm
All-Ireland Semi-final
Dublin   2–17 – 0–11   Tyrone Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 82,300
Referee: David Coldrick (Meath)
Con O'Callaghan 1–2, Dean Rock 0–5 (0-4f), Eoghan O'Gara 1–1, Paul Flynn 0–3, Paddy Andrews 0–2, Jack McCaffrey, Brian Fenton, Ciaran Kilkenny, Paul Mannion 0–1 each Report Peter Harte 0–4 (0-3f), Colm Cavanagh and Niall Sludden 0–2 each, Tiernan McCann, Sean Cavanagh (0-1f), Declan McClure 0–1 each

Pre-match

edit

Jubilee team

edit

The Donegal team that won the 1992 All-Ireland Final were presented to the crowd before the match to mark 25 years.[9]

Ticketing

edit

Demand for tickets was extremely high in both counties with Dublin and Mayo receiving around 32,000 tickets between them. Stand tickets were priced at €80 with terrace at €40.

edit

The 2017 All-Ireland Minor Football Final was played between Kerry and Derry as a curtain-raiser to the senior final, with Kerry winning by 6–17 to 1–8.[10]

Match

edit
 
A Mayo flag flying on the day of the 2017 All-Ireland SFC final

Officials

edit

On 4 September, Cavan's Joe McQuillan was confirmed as the referee for the final. It was McQuilllan's third All Ireland final having previously been in charge in 2011 and 2013. Cork's Conor Lane was the standby referee, the other linesman was Padraig O’Sullivan from Kerry and the Sideline official was Niall Cullen.[11]

Build-up

edit

The All-Ireland final was played between Dublin and Mayo, the second consecutive meeting of the teams in the decisive match.[12] The reigning champions, Dublin, had defeated Mayo following a replay, and were looking to claim their third consecutive title. Dublin were favourites to win prior to throw-in. Pre-match discussion in the media revolved around the Mayo curse, a superstition held among GAA fans that Mayo will not win the All-Ireland until every member of the victorious 1951 team had died. The curse allegedly arose after a priest punished the team for celebrating rapturously in front of a funeral procession.[13]

The game attracted additional international information as association football pundits Jeff Stelling and Chris Kamara made their commentary debut at a GAA game, alongside legendary GAA commentator Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh.[14][15]

Team news

edit

Dublin and Mayo both named the same fifteen players that played in the semi-final wins for the final.[16][17] Prior to the start of the match, Eoghan O'Gara was named to start for Dublin instead of Niall Scully, with Paddy Durcan also starting instead of Diarmuid O'Connor for Mayo.[18]

Summary

edit

The game took place in Croke Park before a capacity audience of 82,000. After 90 seconds of play, Dublin took a definitive lead as Con O'Callaghan scored a goal when he ran at the Mayo defence before shooting low along the ground to the corner of the net at the hill 16 end.[19] However, despite this early three-point lead, Mayo played dominantly throughout the opening 35 minutes, scoring seven points from play to take a one-point lead in at half-time, 0–9 to 1–05. Andy Moran was responsible for three of these points, and his first-half performance was praised by pundits.[20]

However, after the second half began, the game took on a different complexion as Dublin seized the lead by scoring three consecutive points. However, Mayo reclaimed the lead early into the half as Lee Keegan scored a goal to put his team one point ahead. The talking point of the match occurred in the 48th minute, as Dublin's John Small, who had previously received a yellow card in the first half, was sent off for a foul on Colm Boyle.[21] However, Donal Vaughan of Mayo was also sent off after striking Small in the face in retaliation for the foul. This left both teams reduced to fourteen men for the remaining duration of the game. After seventy minutes of the game had elapsed, the teams were tied at 1–16 apiece, and it appeared that the game was destined for a draw and replay. In the seventy-first minute, Mayo were awarded a kickable free and an opportunity to go ahead. Cillian O'Connor, who had missed a free under a similar scenario in the previous final, took the kick, and missed, having it strike the post and rebound away from goal.[22] Then, with a mere minute of the six additional minutes remaining, Diarmuid Connolly was fouled approximately forty-five metres from the Mayo goal, leaving Dublin with a kick to win the game. Dean Rock, the son of Barney Rock, one of the most famous Gaelic footballers from the capital, took the free. Lee Keegan controversially threw a GPS device at Rock as he took the free, yet the Dubliner was undeterred and converted.[23] This left the defending champions one point ahead. Ciarán Kilkenny was then given a black card as Dublin looked to win the Mayo kickout. With Dublin now down to 13 men, they reclaiming possession as David Clarke kicked the ball over the Cusack stand sideline. Dublin maintained possession for approximately 90 seconds until the final whistle was blown. Stephen Cluxton, the Dublin captain, then lifted the Sam Maguire Cup for the fifth time in seven years.[24][25]

Details

edit
Dublin  1–17 – 1–16  Mayo
Dean Rock 0–7 (0-3f)
Con O’Callaghan 1–0
Paul Mannion 0–3
James McCarthy 0–2
John Small 0–1
Brian Fenton 0–1
Eoghan O’Gara 0–1
Diarmuid Connolly 0–1
Kevin McManamon 0–1
Report Cillian O’Connor 0–7 (0-4f)
Lee Keegan 1–0
Andy Moran 0–3
Kevin McLoughlin 0–2
Jason Doherty 0–2
Donal Vaughan 0–1
Colm Boyle 0–1
Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 82,243
Referee: Joe McQuillan (Cavan)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Dublin
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Mayo
GK 1 Stephen Cluxton (c)
CB 2 Philly McMahon   60'
FB 4 Michael Fitzsimons
CB 5 Jonny Cooper
WB 6 John Small   27,48'  
HB 3 Cian O'Sullivan
WB 7 Jack McCaffrey   10'
MF 8 Brian Fenton
MF 9 James McCarthy
WF 10 Ciarán Kilkenny    70+5'
HF 11 Con O'Callaghan   68'
WF 13 Paul Mannion   17'  70+1'
CF 14 Paddy Andrews   36'
FF 26 Eoghan O'Gara   36'
CF 15 Dean Rock
Substitutes:
GK 16 Evan Comerford
FW 12 Niall Scully   68'   70+5'
FW 17 Bernard Brogan   65'
DF 18 David Byrne
FW 19 Diarmuid Connolly   36'
FW 20 Cormac Costello   70+4'   70+6'
DF 21 Darren Daly
FW 22 Paul Flynn   10'   65'
DF 23 Eric Lowndes
MF 24 Michael Darragh MacAuley
FW 25 Kevin McManamon   36'

Manager:
Jim Gavin
GK 1 David Clarke
CB 6 Chris Barrett
FB 2 Brendan Harrison
CB 4 Keith Higgins   70+6'
WB 5 Lee Keegan   27'
HB 7 Colm Boyle   35+4'   56'
WB 18 Patrick Durcan
MF 8 Séamus O'Shea   50'
MF 9 Tom Parsons
WF 10 Kevin McLoughlin   70+5'
HF 11 Aidan O'Shea
WF 3 Donal Vaughan   48'
CF 13 Jason Doherty   70'
FF 15 Andy Moran   63'
CF 14 Cillian O'Connor (c)
Substitutes:
GK 16 Rob Hennelly
FW 12 Diarmuid O'Connor   50'
DF 17 Ger Cafferkey   70+6'
DF 19 Stephen Coen   56'
DF 20 David Drake   70'
DF 21 Shane Nally
FW 22 Danny Kirby   70+5'
FW 23 Conor Loftus   63'
MF 24 Conor O'Shea
MF 25 Barry Moran
FW 26 Alan Dillon

Manager:
Stephen Rochford

Man of the Match:
James McCarthy

 
James McCarthy received the man of the match award.

Trophy presentation

edit

Dublin captain Stephen Cluxton accepted the Sam Maguire Cup from GAA president Aogán Ó Fearghail in the Hogan Stand. Cluxton was making a record 91st championship appearances and lifted the cup for a record fourth time. He was one of 12 Dublin players who collected their fifth senior All-Ireland winners medal.[26] The 12 Dublin players became the only men outside of Kerry to win five senior All-Ireland winners medals in Gaelic football.[27]

Reaction

edit

Highlights of the final were shown on The Sunday Game programme which aired at 9:30 pm that night on RTÉ2 and was presented by Des Cahill. James McCarthy, Dean Rock and Chris Barrett were shortlisted for the Man of the Match award. The winner was James McCarthy with GAA president Aogán Ó Fearghail presenting the award at the Dublin post match function, held in the Gibson hotel.[28][29]

Celebrations

edit

The Dublin team had a homecoming celebration the day after the final at Smithfield in Dublin which started at 6:30 pm.[30][31] The night before, players and their management team celebrated their win at The Gibson Hotel.[32][33][34]

References

edit
  1. ^ "Plan your GAA year: the official 2016 fixture list". Irish Examiner.
  2. ^ "2017 Season Fixtures". Croke Park.
  3. ^ "5 talking points after Dublin triumph and Mayo miss out in All-Ireland battle". The 42. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  4. ^ "'I struck it well and the rest is history now': Rock holds his nerve to deliver for Dublin". The 42. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  5. ^ "Analysis: The switch in Cluxton's kickout strategy, O'Connor's free-taking and Dublin turn the screw". The 42. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Sunday's thrilling All-Ireland football final the most watched show on Irish television this year". The 42. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  7. ^ Breheny, Martin. "Martin Breheny's Greatest All-Ireland Finals". Irish Independent. 1 September 2018, p. 8.
  8. ^ Fogarty, John (11 September 2019). "Brolly now on the sidelines for biggest day of the GAA year". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 11 September 2019. Last Sunday week [1 September 2019] was the first time since 2014 that the long-standing triumvirate of Brolly, O'Rourke, and Pat Spillane was broken up. For the Kerry-Donegal decider five years ago, Whelan took the place of Spillane on the live panel alongside Brolly and O'Rourke.
  9. ^ "Donegal's 1992 All-Ireland heroes to be honoured". RTE Sport. 15 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  10. ^ "Unstoppable David Clifford announces his true brilliance in Kerry stroll". RTE Sport. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  11. ^ "Joe McQuillan to referee All-Ireland SFC final". Hogan Stand. 4 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  12. ^ "Dublin book All Ireland final date with Mayo following thumping win over Tyrone – Independent.ie". Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  13. ^ White, Jim (16 September 2017). "The Curse of Mayo: is Sunday's All-Ireland final against Dublin the year it is finally laid to rest?" – via The Telegraph.
  14. ^ "Stelling & Kamara get Ó Muircheartaigh seal of approval". 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  15. ^ "Here's what Jeff and Kammy thought of the All-Ireland football final". 18 September 2017.
  16. ^ "Jim Gavin sticks to his guns as Dublin side named for Mayo showdown". The 42. 16 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  17. ^ "Mayo unchanged for All-Ireland final". RTE Sport. 16 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  18. ^ "Late changes to Dublin and Mayo teams". RTE Sport. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  19. ^ "Shades of Messi as Con O'Callaghan lights up enthralling final". 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  20. ^ "All-Ireland player ratings – Mayo had more top performers but Dublin have the trophy – Independent.ie". Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  21. ^ "Dublin forced to dig deep to edge enthralling endgame". Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  22. ^ "WATCH: 'We don't want pity' – Cillian O'Connor's hair-raising speech will warm the hearts of every Mayo fan – Independent.ie". Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  23. ^ Sweeney, Peter (18 September 2017). "Rock steady – Dean unfazed by GPS missile". Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  24. ^ "2017 All Ireland Final: as it happened". The 42. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  25. ^ "History-making Dublin inch past heroic Mayo to make it three in a row". RTE Sport. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  26. ^ ""I'll be back next year", Stephen Cluxton reveals his future Dublin football plans". Irish Mirror. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  27. ^ "Dublin's 12 Apostles and their drive for five". Rte Sports. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  28. ^ "McCarthy claims Man of the Match award". 17 September 2017.
  29. ^ "Do you agree with the man-of-the-match winner from today's thrilling football final?". The 42. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  30. ^ "Details revealed for Dublin's homecoming". RTE Sport. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  31. ^ "Joyous scenes for Dublin's All-Ireland homecoming". RTE Sport. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  32. ^ "In pics: Smithfield turns blue as thousands celebrate Dublin's three-in-a-row". The 42. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  33. ^ "Dublin's All-Ireland winners visit Crumlin Children's Hospital with Sam Maguire". The 42. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  34. ^ "Watch: It looked like Jack McCaffrey was enjoying himself at Dublin's victory banquet". The 42. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
edit