Whelan asks ex-players to back off now
The St Vincent’s man added the Sam Maguire to the Andy Merrigan Cup he won with his club in 2007. However, he was more concerned about ex-players getting off the back of the current side.
“This team has plenty of belief but they have broken the mould now. It’s a first All-Ireland for Dublin in 16 years so maybe all the guys that had won one and were running this team down will catch onto themselves.
“These are a super team and the best group of players that I’ve ever been around.”
Whelan agreed with his friend, club-mate and legendary Dublin manager Kevin Heffernan’s assessment that beating Kerry in the final was tantamount to winning a double All-Ireland.
“It is, they are a gold standard so it’s nice when you can do it,” he concurred before adding, “Kerry are a great team and have a great tradition of winning so it makes it all the sweeter if you can beat Kerry in an All-Ireland final. I think we won it well. It’s nice to win an All-Ireland but I prefer to win it playing good football and I think we did that.”
Even four points down with seven minutes left and conceding frees in central scoring areas, Whelan never doubted his team.
“No, no, no. I thought to be ~honest those fouls were all marginal. There was a little bit of playing for fouls and it’s not like Kerry. I think they got the fouls reasonably easy when they built up the three-point lead.
“You’ve seen this team come back and once there was time to come back they were always going to give it one last shot.”
Whelan, who was heavily criticised as a manager in the late Nineties, was keen not to dwell on what it meant to him personally but his delight was obvious.
“Listen, if I was to take that to heart I wouldn’t be here and I wouldn’t still be in Gaelic football. I’ve won a club All-Ireland as a player and as a manager and I’ve won an All-Ireland as a player and coach and I am happy.
“You have to believe in yourself and these guys believe in themselves. It’s really not about us — it’s about them.”
*********
SPORTS Minister Leo Varadkar was amongst the first to congratulate Dublin on their All-Ireland SFC title.
Within minutes of the final whistle his PR machine swung into action issuing a press release to the media
He said: “A million Dubliners are celebrating a historic win. But football fans everywhere can be grateful to both teams for providing us with a truly thrilling final. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the Dublin team for this nail-biting victory. Equally, congratulations to Kerry and their fans for their outstanding performance, and commiserations on the outcome. This was a great day for Dublin. It was also a great day for football. Both teams can afford to be genuinely proud. Stephen Cluxton deserves particular praise for his stand-out performance, and Dublin fans will look back on this day with pride for many years to come.”
*********
THE defeated Kerry side are set to return to the Kingdom later this evening. A special train will bring the team from Heuston Station, Dublin and is expected to arrive in Tralee at 5.55pm. For safety reasons there is no access to the train station itself and supporters are asked to go to Denny Street to meet the team. Jack O’Connor’s side will then depart to Killarney and are expected to arrive in the home town of captain Colm Cooper at 8.30pm.
*********
THE bookmakers are smiling this morning. A Kerry win would have meant a costly payout as many punters had them as a double with Kilkenny for All-Ireland glory. Indeed, Boylesports estimate that another title for the Kingdom would have set them back almost €500,000. Meanwhile Paddy Power have installed Dublin and Kerry as 5/2 joint favourites for next year’s championship.
- 2012 All Ireland Football Championship odds: Dublin 5/2; Kerry 5/2; Cork 4/1; Kildare 14/1; Donegal 16/1; Tyrone 16/1.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
