Dublin 2-14 Mayo 0-15: Mayo bring the fight but Dublin retain All-Ireland title
First-half goals from Dean Rock and Con O'Callaghan helped Dublin to a five-point win over Mayo in the All-Ireland final at Croke Park; the Sky Blues' dominance shows no signs of ending, as they have secured six Sam Maguire Cup triumphs in succession
By Brian Barry at Croke Park
Last Updated: 20/12/20 12:28pm
Dublin are All-Ireland champions for a sixth consecutive time, after a 2-14 to 0-15 win over Mayo.
Mayo brought one hell of a challenge, but goals from Dean Rock and Con O'Callaghan ensured Dublin retained their All-Ireland title with a controlled performance on Jones' Road.
There will be debate around finances and structures in the coming days, weeks and months. But on the field, Dublin remain peerless.
You cannot start an All-Ireland final much better than with a goal after just 14 seconds. Dublin won the throw-in, as James McCarthy stormed forward. The Ballymun star combined with Niall Scully, before picking out his club-mate Dean Rock with a perfectly-weighted hand-pass, and the marksman palmed it past David Clarke.
But this Mayo team are no strangers to setbacks. Nor are they unaccustomed to bouncing back, and that's exactly what they did. They turned up the heat on Stephen Cluxton's kick-outs, winning marks from the Parnells shot-stopper's first two restarts.
Within minutes, they were level after three consecutive points.
Dublin countered with a trio of unanswered white flags of their own to restore their one-goal advantage.
However, the Connacht champions weathered that purple patch, and hit back with five without reply.
James Horan's charges were forcing mistakes from the Dubs defenders, applying serious pressure on the man in possession at every turn.
Nonetheless, Dublin found a response as they do so often. Con O'Callaghan beat the Mayo rearguard with a neat one-two with Niall Scully, before punching the ball into the net in the 23rd minute.
That helped the Sky Blues into a 2-6 to 0-10 lead at the break, but they were handicapped with Robbie McDaid's black card on the stroke of half-time.
Despite Scully opening the scoring for the second half, Mayo used their numerical advantage well. By the 50th minute, they were level, thanks to a pair of O'Connor frees, as well as a Stephen Coen mark.
It was finely poised at the water break, with Dublin leading by a single point.
But from there, the tide turned. Substitutes Brian Howard and Paul Mannion both made real impacts, raising white flags. And a Dean Rock free in the 63rd minute sent Dublin five ahead.
Darren Coen pulled one back, but a Ciarán Kilkenny point kept Mayo at bay.
From there, Dublin had too much experience and class as they closed out the game in style. Ultimately, Mayo's failure to threaten the goal was where they fell short.
It's six All-Ireland titles in a row. Mayo brought the fight, but Dublin had too much class.
Referee: David Coldrick (Meath)
Scorers
Dublin: Dean Rock (1-4, 0-4 frees), Con O'Callaghan (1-1), Ciarán Kilkenny (0-3), John Small (0-1), Seán Bugler (0-1), Niall Scully (0-1), Brian Fenton (0-1), Brian Howard (0-1), Paul Mannion (0-1, 0-1 free).
Mayo: Cillian O'Connor (0-9, 0-6 frees, 0-1 mark), Ryan O'Donoghue (0-2), Oisin Mullin (0-1), Conor Loftus (0-1), Stephen Coen (0-1, 0-1 mark), Darren Coen (0-1).
Teams
Dublin
1. Stephen Cluxton
2. Michael Fitzsimons
3. David Byrne
4. Jonny Cooper
5. Eoin Murchan
6. John Small
7. Robbie McDaid
8. Brian Fenton
9. James McCarthy
10. Niall Scully
11. Ciaran Kilkenny
12. Sean Bugler
13. Paddy Small
14. Con O'Callaghan
15. Dean Rock
Subs
Brian Howard for Seán Bugler (half-time)
Paul Mannion for Paddy Small (51st minute)
Colm Basquel for Jonny Cooper (54th minute)
Cormac Costello for Niall Scully (71st minute)
Philip McMahon for Eoin Murchan (75th minute)
Mayo
1. David Clarke
2. Chris Barrett
3. Oisin Mullin
4. Lee Keegan
5. Paddy Durcan
6. Stephen Coen
7. Eoghan McLaughlin
8. Conor Loftus
9. Matthew Ruane
10. Kevin McLoughlin
11. Ryan O'Donoghue
12. Diarmuid O'Connor
13. Tommy Conroy
14. Aidan O'Shea
15. Cillian O'Connor
Subs
Michael Plunkett for Paddy Durcan (half-time)
James Carr for Tommy Conroy (49th minute)
Darren Coen for Ryan O'Donoghue (58th minute)
Jordan Flynn for Conor Loftus (62nd minute)
James Durcan for Eoghan McLaughlin (71st minute)
Tune into Inside The Game on Wednesday evening on Sky Sports Mix, as our pundits review the final, as well as the season as a whole.
