The 2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final was the 121st All-Ireland Final and the deciding match of the 2008 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, an inter-county Gaelic football tournament for the top teams in Ireland.

Pre-match

Kerry and Tyrone defined the decade. Since 2000, they had hoovered up titles in 2000, 2004, 2006, 2007 (Kerry) and 2003, 2005 (Tyrone). This led to Martin Breheny calling the 2008 final the "most decade-defining clash since Dublin v Kerry in the late 1970s".

2008 was the first final between two teams who had been beaten in their Provincial Championship. Kerry were reigning champions and were gunning for three-in-a-row. Tyrone had looked dead and buried after being knocked out of their Ulster SFC quarter-final by Down after extra-time in a replay, but had bounced back through the back door.

Tyrone had beaten Wexford in their semi-final, while Kerry had beaten Cork after a replay in their semi-final.

Match Summary

Tyrone beat Kerry by four points to claim their third All-Ireland SFC title.

Details

Tyrone = 16 P. McConnell 2 R. McMenamin 3 Justin McMahon 12 Joe McMahon 5 D. Harte 6 C. Gormley 7 P. Jordan 8 C. Holmes 9 E. McGinley 10 B. Dooher (c) 29 M. Penrose 25 R. Mellon 13 T. McGuigan 14 S. Cavanagh 15 C. McCullagh

Substitutes used Stephen O'Neill* for McCullagh (25') K. Hughes for Holmes (half-time) B. McGuigan for Penrose (51') O. Mulligan for Mellon (57') C. Cavanagh for T. McGuigan (68')

Substitutes not used J. Curran D. Carlin P. Donnelly N. Gormley C. McCarron D. McCaul M. McGee C. Gourley R. Mulgrew O. Mulligan Shaun O'Neill P. J. Quinn P. Quinn*

Manager M. Harte

Kerry = 1 D. Murphy 2 M. Ó Sé 3 T. O'Sullivan 4 P. Reidy 5 T. Ó Sé (c) 6 A. O'Mahony 7 K. Young 8 D. Ó Sé 9 S. Scanlon 10 B. Sheehan 11 Declan O'Sullivan 12 E. Brosnan 13 C. Cooper 14 K. Donaghy 15 T. Walsh

Subs used 28 P. Galvin for T. Walsh 19 Darran O'Sullivan for E. Brosnan 17 T. Griffin for S. Scanlon 23 M. F. Russell for B. Sheehan 27 D. Moran for B. Sheehan

Subs not used 16 K. Cremin 18 S. O'Sullivan 20 M. Quirke 21 D. Walsh 22 D. Bohane 24 R. Ó Flatharta 25 P. O'Connor 26 K. O'Leary 29 A. Maher 30 P. Corridan 31 M. Moloney 32 K. Quirke 33 A.O'Shea

Manager P. O'Shea

References