It was a celebratory call, not a tactical one.
Sixteen years on from her championship debut Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh was going to be given the ovation she deserved and the members of management that greeted her made sure of it.
Ní Mhuircheartaigh is very much the emblem of Kerry’s climb back to a summit where they once had an uninhibited view.
Now they are back at that summit and for good measure have edged ahead of neighbours Cork in the roll of honour with a first win since 1993 to claim a 12th title.
After years when the only flags planted on that summit were the red of Cork and the blue of Dublin, that is significant to them.
Ní Mhuircheartaigh hasn’t been as prominent or prolific this year as in other championships but here she made her mark early to help set a tone and a temperature that Galway couldn’t live with.
Kerry were ruthless, leaving no door ajar for the prospect of a third successive final defeat, after successive losses to Meath and Dublin.
Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh
The game was already veering towards a shut out when half-back Aoife Dillane got in behind the cover for their opening goal just before half-time. A 0-8 to 0-3 lead had an extra layer to it as they went in at the break eight points ahead, irretrievable from a Galway point of view.
Kerry built on that with a second goal in the 45th minute from substitute Hannah O’Donoghue who was just on the field in the 44rd minute when Ní Mhuircheartaigh shook off Aoife Ní Cheallaigh and placed her colleague making a darting run in support.
Ní Cheallaigh still had work to do but she turned on to her left and despite pressure from Kate Geraghty got a shot away off her left to beat Dearbhla Gower.
With Galway captain Ailbhe Davoren sin binned soon after, a rout threatened and O’Donoghue quickly stretched their lead to 12 points but to Galway’s credit they scored the next two points from Charlotte Cooney and Andrea Trill to stem the tide.
Off the bench Kerry got further impact with Lorraine Scanlon, who had earlier set up that O’Donoghue point with a magnificent catch, added a point and then O’Donoghue turned provider with a wonderful pass across the goalmouth to Emma Dineen who skilfully sent Gower and Sara Lynch the wrong way for a third goal.
As much as Kerry turned it on with the quality of their goals and their intricate approach work that created all three, this win was built on solid defence.
Galway had obvious threats with Olivia and Niamh Divilly using their pace and evasive skills but Kerry’s effort to thwart them was collective.
If one defender was beaten, there was always another on hand to cover and Kerry consistently pushed Galway attackers back just when it looked like they were about to get a shot away.
Full-back Kayleigh Cronin was magnificent in that respect but Aishling O’Connell was equally resolute while midfielders Mary O’Connell and Anna Galvin got back consistently to keep Galway’s best at arm’s length.
For Galway it’s a second successive All-Ireland final defeat, following on from last week’s one-point All-Ireland loss to Armagh.
But this will be easier to take as at no stage did they have a foothold.
Kerry were simply not going to be denied this time.
Scorers – Kerry: L Ní Mhuircheartaigh 0-6 (4fs), H O’Donoghue, E Dineen 1-2 each, A Dillane 1-0, M O’Connell, N Carmody, A Galvin, L Scanlon all 0-1 each. Galway: O Divilly 0-4 (2fs), R Leonard (2fs) 0-3, N Divilly, C Cooney, S Hynes, A Trill all 0-1 each.
Kerry: C Butler; E Lynch, K Cronin, C Murphy; A O’Connell, C Murphy, A Dillane; M O’Connell, A Galvin; N Carmody, S O’Shea, N Ní Chonchúir; D O’Leary, E Dineen, L Ní Mhuircheartaigh. Subs: H O’Donoghue for Ní Chonchúir (43), L Scanlon for Kearney (48), K Brosnan for Carmody (52), C Lynch for Dillane (53), K O’Sullivan for Ní Mhuircheartaigh (57)
Galway: D Gower; M Jordan, S Lynch, K Geraghty; A Ní Cheallaigh, N Ward, C Cooney; M Glynn, A Davoren; N Divilly, L Ward, O Divilly; E Reaney, L Cohen, R Leonard. Subs: A Trill for Reaney (24), E Gavin for for Ní Cheallaigh (38) M Banek for Jordan (38), S Hynes for Glynn (46), A Morrissey for N Divilly (48).
Ref: J Murphy (Carlow)
