Heart says Kerry,

Former Kerry goalkeeper Eamonn Fitzgerald reckons that the Dubs will be out for revenge following last year’s semi-final

It’s the final everyone wished for, with apologies to the courageous efforts of Monaghan and Derry. It will be Kerry v Dublin in the 2023 All-Ireland final at Croke Park on Sunday with a full capacity of 82,000.

Will Kerry hold on to Sam, won so dramatically last July? Or will the Dubs, stung by that late Seánie O’Shea scud missile right into the teeth of the Hill, get their revenge?

The best two teams have reached the final, as happened with the hurling final on Sunday last. Kilkenny tried for as long as they could to break the Limerick stranglehold but the Shannonsiders went into top gear in the third quarter and no team, not even Kilkenny, could stem the flow. In fact, it was more like a raging torrent. Limerick were magnificent and well deserving of the four-ina-row.

Can Kerry win back-to-back titles and, more pertinently, will they?

Here is my view. Kerry have a lot going for them. They are All-Ireland champions, used to winning and winning is habitual. Much wants more. Not alone have they the best footballer in the country, but the best Kerry footballer of all time. That's the value I put on David Clifford and if the Aussies had their way when he was a minor he would now be a wealthy man in the Australian game. Manchester United would also have loved him. Yes, he is that good, simply the best. How will Dublin cope with him?

I have always rated this team as a good Kerry team but not a great one. Jack and his management team did very well to get an All-Ireland with this squad. Functional to the last, winning despite limitations.

Shane Ryan has been magnificent and like Cluxton he knows that his prime duty is to mind the house and call his defence to order. Thankfully, both Ryan and Cluxton do that to perfection. Out to 30 metres and no more, not aping the mainly northern goalkeepers’ antics of acting as an extra forward.

The only time you will see Cluxton and Ryan well out from goal is when they come up for a very long free, outside even the range of Seánie O’Shea.

The Kerry bench are all good players but nothing compares with what Dessie Farrell has at his disposal. There must be 30-plus All-Ireland medals on the bench. In the modern game of high intensity, the five subs sprung at crucial times is often the determining factor in the outcome. Dublin win this hands down.

Even more so Farrell has readymade options; he can slot subs in his strongest position. Not so Kerry. What happens if Kerry are hosed at midfield? What if Jack Barry doesn’t have