Sean Bugler on song to help Dublin hold off Mayo at Croke Park

It was not exactly the Dublin we are used to, and we had a brand new suite of rules to boot, but ultimately it was a familiar outcome to this Allianz Football League Division 1 opener.

The Sky Blues, tormentors of Mayo so often across the last decade or so at Croke Park, heaped on a little more misery with a significant two-point win.

Dublin were down to the bare bones in terms of regular starters but still came up trumps thanks in no small part to Man of the Match Sean Bugler who struck 0-07, all from play.

Kevin Lahiff had a solid league debut too with 1-02 from the St Jude's man including an early goal that got Dublin up and running.

Boss Dessie Farrell has introduced 16 new players in all this year but will have been pleased with their willingness to engage in battle with the old enemy and to have prevailed at the end of it.

Mayo were in experimental mode too, handing full league debuts to Davitt Neary and Fenton Kelly, while Kevin McStay was able to bring on rookies Cian McHale and Sean Morahan for valuable game time too.

Cillian O'Connor and Padraig O'Hora have retired and Aidan O'Shea wasn't available so McStay was looking for new performers and will continue the search when Mayo play Galway next Sunday.

Dublin will travel to Ballybofey to play Donegal next Saturday evening. Just over seven months after exiting last year's Championship at the hands of Galway, they returned to Croke Park with a new look team.

Their lineup contained five players - goalkeeper Gavin Sheridan, former AFL player James Madden, Kevin Lahiff, ex-hurler Eoghan O'Donnell and Brian O'Leary - making their full NFL debuts.

Eoin Murchan, Brian Howard, Ciaran Kilkenny and Bugler were the only players retained from Dublin's lineup against Galway in that