Dublin Save Kerry - Donegal Go Down

So, in an amazing last ten minutes, in which the tension was further increased by an injury to referee Paudie Hughes in the Donegal/Dublin game, relegation eventually caught up with the All-Ireland Champions. They will play Division 2 next season with Down. Dublin will face Mayo, while Tyrone will play Kildare in the semi-finals of the league. This blog will evaluate what we can learn from the league, and who will go on to claim the trophy.

Let's start with the team in 1st place. Dublin looked excellent throughout. They made light work of Kerry and Kildare, while also taking care of Cork, Down and Mayo. As Martin Carney pointed out, Dublin tried out nearly thirty players throughout their campaign and it's difficult to be critical of a team who topped the Division; Jim Gavin should be a happy manager. He should also, however, be able to inform his players that as the campaign went on, and other teams began to reach the fitness levels that Dublin possessed, the games were much tighter. They lost to Tyrone and drew with Donegal in their last three games. The semi-final next week gives them a chance to avenge last season's All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Mayo for the second time this spring.

Tyrone surprised me in this competition. They bounced back from a disappointing 2012 Championship in superb fashion, and they secured good victories against their opponents in their Ulster opener, Donegal, as well as being the only team to beat Dublin. Although Mickey Harte will be disappointed not to have relegated old foes Kerry, he must be satisfied to have taken a promoted team to the semi-finals. Stephen O'Neill's form has been excellent, and he will be crucial to the Red Hand men's chances in the summer. Tyrone lost two of their last four fixtures, but one of their victories came against semi-final opponents Kildare.

Kildare started their campaign in great form off the back of their O'Byrne Cup victory over Dublin. Their game against the same opponents in Croke Park in match week 4 brought them back down to earth however. There are still questions marks over how much further McGeeney can bring this team. The performance against Dublin, while not a fair reflection of where the Lilywhites are at the moment, still reminded everyone that this Kildare team have serious mental issues against the bigger teams. Reaching the semi-finals is an achievement however, and they have yet another chance to prove the critics wrong when they face Tyrone.

Donegal will be disappointed to have become the first team since Kerry in 2001 to be relegated from Division 1 as All-Ireland champions. As I wrote back at the start of February, it was bound to take them a few weeks to get going following their team holiday in January. The other teams were always going to be able to lift themselves knowing they were facing the All-Ireland champions, and so it proved. All of Donegal's defeats were tight games, and they were staying up until the 71st minute of their game against Dublin. This relegation might be the shot in the arm that the team needs as they prepare to face Tyrone in the first round of the Ulster Championship.

Down were relegated, and I couldn't see any other result from the start. Other than their defeat to Cork, in which Ciaran Sheehan scored a last minute goal, they rarely looked competitive and their five defeats saw them come out with an aggregate score of minus twenty six. The news that Down are to lose three further players to emigration is a further blow to the 2010 All-Ireland finalists coming into the summer. Their quarter-final against Derry is now a huge game for James McCartan's team.

I see Tyrone beating Kildare in the semi-finals. As I said, Tyrone have been a level above what I thought they would be this season while Kildare are another hardluck story waiting to happen. Dublin and Mayo will be a tougher game to call, as the two have a history of tight matches. I think Dublin might be just a bit ahead of the Connacht men in terms of their progress at this stage of the season. Thus, Dublin and Tyrone will contest the league final.