Bench bounce: Who's come on and made the difference when Kerry met Dublin in finals?
KINGDOM SLAYER: Kevin McManamon scores the dramatic, and decisive, Dublin goal to edge the epic All-Ireland SFC semi-final in 2-13. When it comes to finals, Kerry have had slightly more impact from their subs.Â
An injury to Tom Moriarty early in the 1955 All-Ireland SFC final saw John Joe Sheehan enter the fray and by games end had become an influential figure, taking on the centre half role to effect and landing a crucial point in Kerry’s surprise triumph over the ‘Dublin machine’. Twenty years on, you could say history repeated itself, an injury to Kerry captain Micky ‘Ned’ O’Sullivan seeing Ger O’Driscoll entering the fray and by game's end had become an influential figure as well as landing a crucial goal in Kerry’s surprise win over ‘Heffos Army’.
Kevin McManamon, Dublin’s super-sub, has been sprung for the bench in three Dublin v Kerry final fixtures, scoring a vital goal in the 2011 final. In the 11 finals contested since 1955 (including the ’19 replay) Kerry subs have scored 2-8, Dublin’s 2-4.


