Sunday is the clash of the titans. Two footballing Gods collide, just as the bookies foretold, but one will make a sharp descent from the heavens.
When and where?
Throw in 3:30pm, Sunday July 30, Croke Park (Live on BBC2, BBC2 NI, RTÉ 2).
Teams
The big news for Dublin is Ciarán Kilkenny remaining on the bench, as Seán Bugler returns to join him having missed the semi-final victory over Monaghan.
Whether they remain there remains to be seen, but it is nonetheless stacked with experience, with Jack McCaffrey and Dean Rock unlikely to start late.
For Kerry, Adrian Spillane is the victim of Stephen O'Brien's stirring second-half showing against Derry the last day out.
David Clifford wears the captain's armband.
Dublin: Stephen Cluxton, Eoin Murchan, Michael Fitzsimons, David Byrne; James McCarthy, John Small, Lee Gannon ;Brian Fenton, Brian Howard; Paddy Small, Paul Mannion, Niall Scully; Cormac Costello, Con O’Callaghan, Colm Basquel.
Kerry: Shane Ryan; Graham O’Sullivan, Jason Foley, Tom O’Sullivan; Paul Murphy, Tadhg Morley, Gavin White; Diarmuid O’Connor, Jack Barry; Dara Moynihan, Seán O’Shea, Stephen O’Brien; Paudie Clifford, David Clifford, Paul Geaney.
Paths to the final
Dublin:
Dublin 4-30 Laois 2-9 (Leinster quarter-final)
Dublin 0-14 Kildare 0-12 (Leinster semi-final)
Dublin 5-21 Louth 0-15 (Leinster final)
Dublin 1-11 Roscommon 0-14 (All-Ireland Group 3)
Dublin 0-22 Kildare 0-13 (All-Ireland Group 3)
Dublin 3-23 Sligo 0-8 (All-Ireland Group 3)
Dublin 2-17 Mayo 0-11 (All-Ireland quarter-final)
Dublin 1-17 Monaghan 0-13 (All-Ireland semi-final)
• Played 8, Won 7, Drew 1
Kerry
Kerry 0-25 Tipperary 0-5 (Munster quarter-final)
Kerry 5-14 Clare 0-15 (Munster final)
Mayo 1-19 Kerry 0-17 (All-Ireland Group 1)
Kerry 1-14 Cork 0-15 (All-Ireland Group 1)
Kerry 5-24 Louth 0-11 (All-Ireland Group 1)
Kerry 2-18 Tyrone 0-12 (All-Ireland quarter-final)
Kerry 1-17 Derry 1-15 (All-Ireland semi-final)
• Played 7, Won 6, Lost 1
Top Scorers
Dublin:
1. Con O’Callaghan 2-28 (0-4 frees, 0-3 marks)
2. Colm Basquel 5-16 (0-1 free)
3. Cormac Costello 0-25 (0-12 frees, 0-2 ‘45s’, 0-1 mark)
4. Paul Mannion 1-16 (0-3 frees, 0-1 mark))
5. Sean Bugler 1-12
6. Ciaran Kilkenny 1-11
7. Dean Rock 1-10 (0-4 frees)
Kerry:
1. David Clifford 5-39 (0-17 frees, 2-0 pen, 0-3 mark)
2. Sean O’Shea 2-34 (0-14, frees, 0-4 ‘45s’, 0-1 mark)
3. Paudie Clifford 2-7
4. Tony Brosnan 1-9 (0-1 mark)
5. Tom O’Sullivan 0-9
6. Dara Moynihan 1-5
7. Paul Geaney 0-7 (0-2 mark)
Championship history
This will be the 33rd championship meeting between the counties since they first met in 1892. Kerry have won 18 times to Dublin’s 11 while there were three draws from the previous 32 clashes.
Kerry’s win in last year’s semi-final was their first since 2009. Dublin beat them five times and one game was drawn between 2011 and 2019.
Bookies Verdict
Dublin 5/4 Draw 13/2 Kerry EVS
