No lead is safe as top two face off in Salthill

Sunday afternoon's game in Salthill could be a dress rehearsal for bigger days down the tracks.

The only downer is that bad weather is forecast in the west this weekend - surprise, surprise - so the infamous Atlantic gale at Pearse Stadium could exert a massive influence on the game.

For lessons in how to play against a stiff breeze, you could probably do worse than look at how Dublin approached things in the first half in Tralee. Though few would have been saying as much at half-time.

The Dubs were criticised for playing lateral, keep-ball football in the opening 35 minutes. By half-time, they had 67% possession and were trailing by 11 points. Scoring from anywhere beyond the 21m line seemed nigh-on impossible.

In retrospect, it made sense in the conditions. Playing against that gale, the clock was their friend in the first half. The longer they spent passing the ball this way and that on the 45m line, the more time it took out of Kerry's chance to run up a score.

Kerry were probably culpable in allowing them to do that. They didn't show enough urgency in pressuring the ball carrier. We saw in the second half that Dublin were far more proactive and aggressive out of possession and it bore fruit. Perhaps the simple fact of being so far behind on the scoreboard meant they understood they had to take that tack.

Even despite Dublin's shrewd keep-ball approach, you would have said that 11 points was a substantial enough lead. Kerry were efficient in attack and excitingly direct at times. 1-12 was a decent scoring haul off 33% of the ball. Their issue wasn't what they did with the ball, it was that they weren't anxious enough to get it.

But the second half showed us that even a double-digit advantage isn't safe in this new world.