This would be classed as a get-out-of-jail operation for Ballyboden if they hadn’t been making a habit of such escapes.

Ballyboden St Endas’ timing couldn’t have been better as they staged a late burst to claim their second Leinster title in four years in an attritional game in MW Hire O’Moore Park.

Half an hour or so after full-time in Mullingar, a round of applause that seemed to go on and on rose up from the losing Garrycastle dressing room. It can only have been for one man, Dessie Dolan, as the Westmeath great pulled the shutters down on a 22-year senior club career in bittersweet circumstances.

The powerful former Aussie Rules player was infamously sent-off in the semi-final that year and fought in vain to have the sanction overturned.

Dublin hero Michael Darragh Macauley left the field with a suspected concussion as Ballyboden St Enda's put their bodies on the line to secure a fourth county SFC title.

Conal Keaney has predicted that Mayo will attempt to draw Dublin into a battle at Croke Park and then hope that Jim Gavin’s side ‘fall apart’ in the final 10 minutes.

Eoghan O’Donnell says veteran Dublin colleague Conal Keaney could be the county’s greatest ever hurling servant.

Dublin captain Chris Crummey has admitted Galway-born manager Mattie Kenny and selector Greg Kennedy were pumped up to beat their native county in last Saturday week’s Leinster SHC final round game.

Galway have been sensationally dumped out of the All-Ireland hurling championship after a remarkable evening at Parnell Park that saw Dublin pull off a famous Leinster SHC win.

Shortly before the Leinster hurling championship began, Marty Kavanagh admitted that Carlow would be targeting the Dublin game in particular.

When Dublin, trailing by three points, were awarded a free deep into injury-time at Parnell Park and centre-back Sean Moran strode forward, the mind was drawn back to Croke Park last year.

Eoghan O’Donnell has claimed that the Dublin hurlers have gathered their strongest panel in years as they chase a Championship breakthrough.

The distance from the headline to the small print was sketched out efficiently yesterday in Nowlan Park.

Limerick manager John Kiely paid tribute to his panel yesterday for maintaining their standards since winning last year’s All-Ireland success, saying “all the credit goes to the players” for kicking on to reach the Allianz League final.

That Tipperary have only one league win from three outings is not a concern for Liam Sheedy.

Readers know how the NFL draft works: In an effort to maintain competitive balance, teams which perform poorly this season get to choose better prospects coming out of college for next season. Michael Moynihan opens a similar draft for hurling counties.

Colm Basquel was at the Dunboyne Castle Hotel last Thursday evening for the launch of the Sean Cox charity football game, using his status as a Dublin football star to help promote the event.

Veteran Ballyboden St Enda’s star Conal Keaney has claimed that even some of their own club members wondered if the team was over the hill.

Goals in either half from Conor McCormack and Paul Ryan proved pivotal as Ballyboden St Enda’s regained the Dublin senior hurling crown when narrowly overcoming Kilmacud Crokes in their final replay at Parnell Park yesterday afternoon.

DUBLIN 2-24 OFFALY 0-13: On the darkest of days for Offaly hurling, not even Our Lady of Consolation church next to Parnell Park could offer any sort of silver lining.

There is nothing like the unknown, hurling wise, for sauce.

Former Dublin manager Michael O’Grady reckons there is more pressure on Wexford than Dublin ahead of their Leinster SHC round two game on Sunday.

Former All-Ireland winning Tipperary captain Eoin Kelly reckons Dublin blew a chance of a famous win and could struggle to pick things time up in time for next Sunday.

Páirc Uí Chaoimh stadium director Bob Ryan says “there’ll be no issue with the pitch” for tomorrow week’s Munster SHC opener between Cork and Clare at the venue.

Former Dublin hurling attacker David O’Callaghan reckons new boss Pat Gilroy is well capable of turning the corner on a slow start in the job.

Former All-Star hurler Danny Sutcliffe has admitted a tightening of US visa regulations contributed to his decision to return to the Dublin setup.

Offaly 2-25 Dublin 1-15: Talisman forward Shane Dooley crowned his 100th Offaly appearance with 1-5 as the Faithful County pulled off a surprise Allianz hurling league win.

Every year the comparative article here on this day constitutes a variation on a familiar theme. We have, oh dear, had precious little to talk about since last September. We have, oh woe, been living on processed meat. Now proper hurling — real beef — is back again. Yay! Rejoice and be glad. Etc.

Retiring hurling referee Brian Gavin admits he felt pressure from Tipperary supporters during his officiating career, as they deemed his style of reffing favoured Kilkenny.

Cycling campaigners want the proposed Liffey Cycling Route in Dublin to be built as soon as possible.

Conal Keaney has been pained to watch the Dublin hurlers sink to a level where they have been “laughed at” but the former dual star believes a big-name managerial appointment would soon turn things around.

On Wednesday night I took out a pen and paper and wrote down an alternative Dublin team to the one that is selected for tomorrow in Tullamore.

Former dual Dublin GAA star Conal Keaney has set similar high standards in business as he had on the field, as he tells Pádraig Hoare

There was a time when the mention of Dublin’s senior footballers in a Kerry pub didn’t compel patrons to drink deep (to paraphrase the Austin Clarke poem). That was when the idea of a Dublin manager extending his record against Kerry to seven wins from eight meetings would have been ridiculed.

A former Dublin footballer has begun a social media campaign asking for the return of GAA medals that were stolen from his car over Christmas.

Liam Dunne is talking about Wexford’s future. Happily. Comfortably. His fifth season in charge was brought into question by some a couple of months back but here he still stands.

Ger Cunningham wouldn’t mind having more of his panel available to him against Wexford on Saturday but he agrees it feels more like his team this year.

Limerick 1-21 Dublin 1-19: Limerick manager TJ Ryan has launched a scathing attack on local commentators, describing them as ‘vultures’ and claiming they haven’t given his team near enough credit.