Elsewhere a robust Harty final ended in stalemate as Thurles failed to hold their minimal lead deep into added time. The refixture is for the same Nenagh venue this Saturday, an arrangement that displeases Thurles with Aidan McCormack due to miss out by a matter of hours.

In last week's column I suggested that the Parnell Park game was a potential banana skin for Tipperary. The venue, Dublin's heavy defeat the previous week to Waterford and our own lack of match practice were all elements that urged caution in approaching this fixture. Yet, even my wariness didn't extend to anticipating a trip-up to the extent of outright defeat, let alone a nine-point reversal. Yet that was our fate, beaten in all lines said Sheedy afterwards with typical frankness.

It's only our second league defeat to Dublin in over sixty years, the first since we lost by a point at Croke Park in the 1989(90 campaign. Mind you we haven't met them too often in latter years. Last March we faced them at the Stadium while still suffering the hang-over from Nowlan Park. That day we conceded four goals in a narrow two-point win,

2-19 to 4-11, further reason surely to be cautious last Sunday.

For Sheedy and company it was a rare league lapse too. Outside of Kilkenny this was their first league defeat to any other county since they took charge in late '07.

Yet, I suspect, such a statistic will hardly save the players in training this week. We're into March but this was definitely not a spring-like performance from Tipperary. The manager can't have been happy with such a flat display and the players will surely get an earful during the week.

Ironically it all began so promisingly with the TG4 cameras barely focused before Corbett raced through in the opening seconds to draw the foul that saw Kelly rattle the rigging from the penalty. Was it a foul at all? It certainly seemed harsh and was not the type of award that you'll get too often especially in the opening seconds.

If that relaxed, even lulled Tipperary into expecting an easy passage from the Dubs, they were soon disabused of such notions. An unanswered string of Dublin points gave a truer picture of the day's fate and even though Tipp recovered after a barren opening quarter they were again five in arrears at the break and it got progressively worse on the turnover.

The problems for Tipperary seemed to be widespread though like others I'm depending here on the limited perspective of the TG4 cameras. Dublin seemed the feistier side all over with the Tipperary lads well off the pace and intensity required. There was space and scope aplenty for Dublin players as we seemed to struggle in all sectors.

The pre-match loss to illness of Shane McGrath was an obvious blow. His work ethic in the middle third of the pitch was badly missed.