The embarrassment of riches at Jim Gavin's disposal was underlined in Drogheda today as Dublin's 'third string' captured the O'Byrne Cup silverware at Louth's expense.
Paul Clarke signed off as Dublin interim boss with an impressive 2-16 to 1-10 victory over the Wee County.
Following their morale boosting semi-final win over neighbours Meath seven days ago, Colin Kelly and his Louth charges would have entered the contest in a confident frame of mind but they fell off the pace during the second-half.
The visitors held a slender 0-6 to 0-5 interval lead after Ciarán Reddin brought the first-half scoring to a close but they upped the ante considerably after the resumption and pulled away to record a nine point victory.
They hit seven points without reply during the third quarter and Louth supporters were forced to wait until the 54th minute before they opened their second-half account.
Late goals from substitutes Colm Basquel and Killian O'Gara applied the gloss to the metropolitans' performance while Padraig Rath netted a consolation goal for the home side.
Afterwards, Reddin was presented with the O'Byrne Cup by new Leinster Council chairman Jim Bolger while Niall Scully was honoured with the 'man-of-the-match' accolade.
Now the focus turns to Dublin's defence of their Allianz FL Division 1 crown, which starts with a trip to Cavan next Sunday, while Kelly & Co will hope for better luck when they travel to Portlaoise next Saturday evening.
Dublin - E Comerford; R McGowan, E O'Brien, J Smith; R Gaughan, C Reddin (0-3, 1'45), C Mullally; J Whelan (0-1), R Hazley (0-1); N Scully (0-1), S Boland, N Walsh; C McHugh (0-1), S Cunningham (0-1), P Hudson (0-6, 3f). Subs: E O Conghaile for R Hazley, C Basquel (1-1) for S Boland, T Shiels for C Mullally, G Sweeney for N Walsh, K O'Gara (1-0) for S Cunningham, S Newcombe for J Whelan, R O'Brien (0-1) for C McHugh.
Louth - C Lynch; P Rath (1-0), P Reilly, K Carr; D Maguire, D McMahon, A Williams; T Durnin, A McDonnell; J Stewart, P Smith (0-5), B Duffy; C McKeever, J McEneaney, R Holcroft (0-3). Subs: A Reid for C McKeever, R Burns for J McEneaney, D Byrne for D McMahon, E O'Connor for T Durnin, S Mulroy (0-2f) for R Holcroft, R Moore for A McDonnell, R Nally for P Smith, D Maguire (BC).
Referee - J Hickey.
TweetCiaran Reddin accepts the @BordnaMona @gaaleinster O'Byrne Cup from Jim Bolger, Leinster G.A.A. Chairman pic.twitter.com/zPo4GkQOrl
- Leinster GAA (@gaaleinster) January 29, 2017