Welcome to Cusack Park, Mullingar for the Leinster club final. Last weekend we saw some of the best football ever at this level with Dr Crokes and Crossmaglen making it through to the semi-finals of the All Ireland. Combine that with the fact St Brigid’s are already there, and we are in line for one of the best final fours ever, certainly in terms of entertaining football.

The bookies have this as a toss of a coin as do most people, but if anything we think Portlaoise’s experience might get them over the line by one or two. But both sides play a similar game and while the Laois side have been unstoppable in attack, Ballymun have been mean at the back all season long. Throw-in is just five minutes away and to keep you busy, here’s our preview… http://thescore.thejournal.ie/preview-ballymun-kickhams-v-portlaoise-leinster-club-sfc-final-706748-Dec2012/

As we’ve stated Portlaoise have lost their last four to Dublin opposition but as the national anthem rings out, they are too good a team for that to go on much longer. But huge credit to Ballymun, after the weight being lifted locally with that Dublin title, to carry on winning is no mean achievement.

The referee here is David Gough from Meath and we are just about to get underway on a very decent day for football given this is mid-December.

3 minutes, Ballymun 0-0, Portlaoise 0-1: Entertaining start with both sides moving the ball well. We talked in the build-up about Ballymun looking to break in waves off the turnover, just like Donegal did in the summer. They tried it there but Portlaoise will be pleased to hold steady. They’ll be even more pleased with that as that’s a brilliant round-the-corner point from Brian McCormack who was under pressure with his back to goal. Against this defence, the Laois side cannot be wasteful, but that was the opposite, indeed it was inspirational.

6 minutes, Ballymun 0-0, Portlaoise 0-1: Portlaoise’s is the sort of full-back line Ballymun won’t have faced all season, indeed they may well be the best full-back line in club football, and they’ve won all the early battles in around their own goal. That’s a good platform in what will be a close battle, granted Kickhams have owned the majority of the ball further out the field although their inability to point from distance in the opening minutes is something they’ll have to address.

10 minutes, Ballymun 0-0, Portlaoise 0-1: Cahir Healy was one of the unheralded heroes of the summer and he’s carried that form into the club scene. He has been brilliant in the early stages but Ballymun are peppering that Laois full-back line with high balls. They finally win one and it takes a great save from Michael Nolan to deny Dean Rock. You just wonder if they should be clipping over scores from 40 given their half-forward line are on top and have seen plenty of ball.

14 minutes, Ballymun 0-1, Portlaoise 0-1: Portlaoise are shooting on site, granted they’ve been on site as much as a builder in this economy. At least Brian McCormack  does look lively, winning a 45, but Adrian Kelly’s shot is short. He needs to put those dead because it can lead to the sort of swift counter-attack that has been key to Kickham’s winning season and it’s key to their opening score here as well as Ted Furman is fouled off the ball and it’s an easy free for Dean Rock. Ballymun well on top here, despite the scoreline and Portlaoise really need to get some ball at centrefield.

16 minutes, Ballymun 0-2, Portlaoise 0-1: Craig Rogers and Barry Fitzgerald with a couple of awful wides there. We mentioned in the preview how Portlaoise couldn’t be wasteful but that’s not the only leak in the dam. In the All Ireland quarter-final, a key to Laois getting close to Dublin was denying Stephen Cluxton the short, quick and safe kickout. But that’s not happening here as Dean Rock puts his side ahead for the first time with another easy free.

20 minutes, Ballymun 0-2, Portlaoise 0-1: You just wonder the breaking point of the Portlaoise full-back line as this first half wears on. They are far too busy but worse than that, when they do win long ball in, there’s a full-court press and they’ve nowhere to go with the ball. That’s leading to them overplaying it. Their two saving graces so far have been their quality and Ballymun’s reluctance to kick points – the first has stopped goals and the second has kept this so close.

25 minutes, Ballymun 0-4, Portlaoise 0-1: Another awful wide for the Laois side. Best move of the game by them sees Hugh Coughlan come onto the ball at pace, 25 yards out and with space in front of him. He had time to steady himself there and kick a point or room to charge forward and go for goal. Instead he blazed wide on the run, very poor decision making that a team with so little possession just cannot afford. At the other end Ted Furman wins a free and he’s lucky because Dean Rock’s frees are all that are mattering here. Let’s be fair, for two very talented squads, outside of Brian McCormack from play, the shooting has been atrocious. Craig Rogers booked there for a pull-back and Rock slots another one. Portlaoise need half-time very soon or this will be gone.

29 minutes, Ballymun 0-6, Portlaoise 0-1: Ted Furman’s movement along with the sheer amount of ball going into him has Tommy Fitzgerald in trouble and he’s booked for a foul on the corner-forward. Best free of the lot from Rock. After a series of straightforward efforts, that’s a good finish from out on the left-hand side. But Portlaoise can neither break the tackle or get away from their men further out the field and that’s the real issue here. They are simply being dominated from their half-back line all the way up the pitch. If Ballymun’s decision-making in the forwards was as good as their pressure elsewhere this would be a rout. Granted, it still might be Kevin Leahy profits from a poor clearance.

Half-time, Ballymun 0-6, Portlaoise 0-2: We mentioned how good Cahir Healy has been all season – and today – and he’s trying to carry the team. He’s been great at the back despite swimming into the tide and the corner-back gets into a corner-forward position, punches over and urges better from his team. That needs to be the spark because they have been dominated. The one positive is they are only four behind and given the balance of play, it should be twice that. We’ll be back after the break to see if that’s the start of a fightback or if Ballymun are simply too good.

Back out here for the second half. If it’s the same Portlaoise who have returned, then this is game over. In fact if it’s the same Ballymun from the first half, that may be too much as well.

33 minutes, Ballymun 0-7, Portlaoise 0-2: Brief signs of life from Portlaoise as they try to rough it up before throw-in but once the ball is in it’s more of the same. Only a good stop from Michael Nolan denies James McCarthy but Karl Connolly sticks over the rebound. From the next possession there’s another high ball in as Nolan takes ball and Dean Rock out of it but the full-forward is alright after taking a knee to the stomach.

37 minutes, Ballymun 0-8, Portlaoise 0-3: Portlaoise have plenty of size but they haven’t been able to cope with the focussed physicality of the opposition. It’s a thread that’s run right through the Dublin champions, and there have been no weak links, leaving Portlaoise no outs so far. Finally some respite though, as Brian Glynn keeps his side hanging onto coattails. They need more of those but instead it’s Ted Furman pointing at the other end after James McCarthy is again denied by Michael Nolan. Ballymun beginning to open up the opposition with runs from the deep and that’s overloading the Portlaoise full-back line.

40 minutes, Ballymun 0-9, Portlaoise 0-3: Time of death, 14.40? Jason Whelan points and that score has summed up the game. Brian Smith has had to come deep from corner-forward to try and get ball – so deep he is in his own half – but with no options and a wall of Ballymun players in front of him, he gets done for travelling. A quick ball from the free finds Whelan and that’s a tidy finish. Cue the “Ballymun tower over Portlaoise”  headlines…

45 minutes, Ballymun 0-9, Portlaoise 0-5: Lovely score by Brian McCormack. Outside of Cahir Healy and Michael Nolan, he’s been his side’s most influential player. Indeed those three are the only three who have been anyway influential. Meanwhile Paul Cahillane goes into the book. The former Celtic player is usually a goal threat at corner-forward but he’s been out of it. Sean George replaces Elliot Reilly for Ballymun as they look to keep fresh and see their high-pressure game through to the end. Just as we mention Cahillane, he pops over a free. Somehow just four in it but Portlaoise will surely need a goal given the limited chances. Brian Smith gone for Portlaoise, Eoin Whelan on.

47 minutes, Ballymun 0-9, Portlaoise 0-6: And another one! Brian Fitzgerald with a free from distance out of the hands. Not killing off games they dominated cost Ballymun in last year’s Dublin championship and very nearly in this year’s Dublin final. Surely not again, and after us pronouncing Portlaoise dead moments ago? Craig Rogers goes into the book.

49 minutes, Ballymun 0-9, Portlaoise 0-6: Three wides on the bounce don’t help Portlaoise. They looked lazy efforts at first but the pressure was huge on both the man in possession and those around him. You just wonder have Ballymun run out of steam after such a high-intensity first three-quarters. And you wonder can Portlaoise take their chances after such a low conversion rate throughout this game.

52 minutes, Ballymun 0-9 Portlaoise 0-6: Portlaoise kicking their chances away Brian McCormack has moved out the field in the last few minutes and that has made a huge difference. He’s thrown himself about and not only won a lot of ball but carried it from deep. The trade off though is there’s no ball-winners inside. That causes him to shoot hopelessly from way out and that’s four wides since reducing the margin to a goal. Despite being outplayed for 45 minutes, this spell will give Portlaoise reason to think they kicked it away.

56 minutes, Ballymun 0-10 Portlaoise 0-6: Lazy foul on Davy Byrne in the corner, and Jason Whelan kicks a sweet free from the hands. Chance come and gone for Portlaoise, just amazing there was even a chance after Ballymun’s dominance.

57 minutes, Ballymun 0-10 Portlaoise 0-7: That’s a superb point from Cahir Healy. Not only is he one of the better intercounty man-markers, he is a sweet striker of a ball and that sails over the bar from 35 out. Portlaoise need a goal though, and they haven’t created a single goal chance all day. There is no room inside the Ballymun 40.

59 minutes, Ballymun 0-10 Portlaoise 0-7: Criminal from Kieran Lillis. He may be a centre-back but that was only 21 yards out and he swings a chip shot wide of the left-hand post. Ballymun’s choice-making may have been bad for 45 minutes, but Portlaoise’s shooting has been bad for 59. They’ve only a minute to rectify that, and it’d want to be one hell of a shot at this stage.

60+1 minutes, Ballymun 0-11 Portlaoise 0-7: There’ll be four minutes of stoppage time but that shouldn’t matter now. Dean Rock pops over a free.

60+4 minutes, Ballymun 0-11 Portlaoise 0-8: Barry Fitzgerald gets one back with a free but it’s the last kick of the game.

Full-time, Ballymun 0-11 Portlaoise 0-8: Portlaoise will look back at the last 10 minutes and a string of wides and think they might have won this. But in truth, you can’t be punched around the ring for the first nine rounds and expect to win on points. Ballymun’s decision making will have to improve if this isn’t to be their last win of this campaign as throughout, while dominating possession, they dropped far too many balls into the full-forward line when point-taking would have resulted in a rout. It’ll also bother them that they are becoming known for fading down the home straight. It caught them last year and could catch them in the next round if they winter well. But that’s for another day, as here for 45 minutes they were completely dominant. They didn’t have a weak link for that first three-quarters of the game, they pressured the ball and man to the extent Portlaoise didn’t have an out and were bottled up and their physicality was focussed and disciplined. They were hugely deserving and to win a first county title in an age and follow it up with a provincial title is as rare as it is impressive.