Dublin are Division One champions for the third successive year after easily defeating out-of-sorts Cork by 1-21 to 2-7 at Croke Park.

Diarmuid Connolly fired a precise penalty to the bottom left corner on the stroke of half time to give the winners an unassailable 1-9 to 0-5 interval advantage. The Leesiders, who flopped inexplicably today, failed to score from play before the break.

Jack McCaffrey delivered a Man of the Match display for the winners, who could also thank the unerring Dean Rock for clipping over ten points in all. Mark Collins and substitute Daniel Goulding hit the Cork goals in the second half, both arriving with the match long since over as a meaningful contest.

Dublin, who led from pillar to post, were ahead by four points to no score after seven minutes. Kevin McManamon opened the scoring in the second minute, nonchalantly popping the ball between the posts after stepping inside Michael Shields, before Rock (2; one free) and Ciaran Kilkenny found the target.

In between, Cork's Jamie O'Sullivan's elbow caught Diarmuid Connolly on the jaw and Brian Hurley's clever fisted effort went inches wide of the Hill 16 goal with Dubs captain Stephen Cluxton stranded.

Rock booted over a 13th-minute free from the hands after Eoin Cadogan's shoulder on Kilkenny was penalised and the Rebels finally got on the scoreboard in the 15th minute courtesy of a Colm O'Neill free. Rock stroked over a free six minute later following a foul on Bernard Brogan and both sides were guilty of poor wides before corner back McMahon pointed to give the holders a six-point cushion with eleven minutes left before the break.

O'Neill chipped over a brace of frees on 25 and 27 minutes to close the gap to four and Hurley popped over a 30th-minute free from in front of the posts after a foul on O'Neill: 0-7 to 0-4. But those scores only seemed to rile Dublin as Kilkenny made it double scores and a trademark Brogan score was followed by Connolly's converted penalty after Shields took Tomas Brady - a late starter for the Dubs in place of Paul Flynn - down.

An O'Neill free closed the first-half scoring but Brian Cuthbert's men had a mountain to climb as the short whistle sounded with seven points between the teams.

Within seconds of entering the fray, Cork substitute Goulding struck the crossbar from close range. At the other end, McCaffrey's goal effort rebounded off a post but he collected the rebound and pointed. Rock (free) followed up immediately to stretch the gap to nine. Further quickfire scores from Rock (2), Brady and Brogan were followed by Cork's first score from play - a low Mark Collins shot to the back of the net in the 47th minute: 1-15 to 1-5.

Half-time substitute Paddy Andrews and O'Neill swapped scores as did Rock (free) and O'Neill ('45'). Andrews grabbed his second; Kilkenny claimed his third; Rock (free) bagged his ninth as the Dubs remained utterly dominant.

Yet another Rock free flew high into The Hill and the Rebels mustered a consolation goal from Goulding a minute from the end of the 2015 national football league.

Dublin - S Cluxton; P McMahon (0-1), R O'Carroll, J Cooper; J McCarthy, C O'Sullivan, J McCaffrey (0-1); D Bastick, B Fenton; T Brady (0-1), C Kilkenny (0-3), D Connolly (1-0); D Rock (0-10, 7f), K McManamon (0-1), B Brogan (0-2). Subs: M Fitzsimons for R O'Carroll, P Andrews (0-2) for T Brady, E O Conghaile for D Bastick, C Costello for D Connolly, J Small for P McMahon, D Daly for B Fenton.

Cork - K O'Halloran; N Galvin, M Shields, J Loughrey; J O'Sullivan, C Dorman, T Clancy; E Cadogan, F Goold; K O'Driscoll, J O'Rourke, C O'Driscoll; C O'Neill (0-6, 4f, 1'45), M Collins (1-0), B Hurley (0-1f). Subs: P Kerrigan for C Dorman, D Goulding (1-0) for J O'Rourke, B O'Driscoll for C O'Driscoll, D Og Hodnett for J O'Sullivan, J Hayes for M Collins, S Cronin for N Galvin.

Referee - P Hughes.

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