Until half-time in this game at Parnell Park the optimism about Dublin's growing stature in the hurling world seemed justified. But, sadly for hurling and Dublin, the tide turned dramatically against them soon after the start of the second half and it was downhill all the way from there to the predictable and depressing end.

The margin of 21 points at the end points to an enormous gap in standards between the sides. A big number of the Dublin supporters in a capacity crowd of 10,000, which included the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, were drifting away disconsolately long before the end. That first half seemed to give considerable reason for optimism. It was not that Dublin seemed capable of causing the upset of the hurling year but the players were hurling with fervour and some skill, matching Kilkenny point for point and even taking the lead. However, once Kilkennny decided to open their shoulders after half-time, Dublin's hopes rapidly vanished.

DJ Carey's resumption of his championship career did not disappoint the crowd. He made an indelible mark on the game as early as the fourth minute when he rifled the sliotar past Brendan McLoughlin from about 25 yards for Kilkenny's second goal.

His free-taking was immaculate and, even though he managed only one point from play, his contribution of 1-8 was hugely significant. When he left the pitch after 52 minutes the ovation from the Kilkenny supporters would have done justice to a pop star.

His opening goal did not seem to seriously damage Dublin's morale and 10 minutes later they had drawn level at 1-3 to 0-6. Former Kilkenny star Eamonn Morrissey was largely responsible for Dublin's prosperity at this stage, and another former Kilkenny player, Jamesie Brennan, finally put Dublin into the lead with a point from a free and a long-range effort from play to leave the score 09 to 1-5. At that stage Dublin looked calm and collected but Kilkenny's greater depth of talent was always evident and by half-time they had edged ahead on a score of 1-9 to 0-11.

Kilkenny's second goal in the second minute of the second half served to knock a great hole in Dublin's confidence. It came about by an excellent exchange of passes between Brian McEvoy and Charlie Carter with the former cutting inside a hesitant Dublin defence to drive the ball well wide of McLoughlin in the Dublin goal.

That score opened up a lead of 210 to 0-11 for Kilkenny and the fact that the Dubliner's could contribute a miserly tally of three points in the entire second half spoke volumes about the gap in standards between the sides. Dublin really had no answer to Kilkenny's superiority when they lifted the tempo of the match. Widespread alterations in the positioning of the players failed to have any effect as the Kilkenny defence completely blocked out the Dublin attempts to salvage some pride.

As Kilkenny attacked on all fronts Dublin strove manfully to stem the tide but with Tom Hickey, the Kilkenny captain, leading by example in the right corner of the defence and Pat O'Neill and Canice Brennan playing very soundly at full back and centre half respectively, Kilkenny were able to dominate in most phases of the match. The fact that no fewer than 10 of their players contributed to their total score indicates just how superior they were in all areas of the match.

Dublin had started with David Sweeney at midfield in place of James Brennan who moved to the wing with Conor McCann going in to the corner. It was the first of many bewildering switches by Dublin but they never really got to grips with crucial areas of the match including midfield, where Kilkenny's Philip Larkin and Peter Barry were never really stretched.

Michael Phelan made a significant contribution on his return to fitness at centre forward and PJ Delaney showed that he has lost none of his sharpness. Dublin struggled in many areas but they did so with great heart until they were overwhelmed towards the end. While they have nothing to be ashamed of it will be a sore blow to their hopes. What it illustrates again, however, is that in a county which is so focused on football there will always be fierce pressure on hurling. Kilkenny folk were asking themselves afterwards about how good their side actually is. What they can be content about is that this was an extremely valuable pipe-opener for them and allowed their selectors to take a look at some new combinations and options.

What they will be most happy about, however, is that, although there was a hint of a hamstring injury for DJ Carey to cope with, it would appear to be a minor matter which should not deprive them of his extremely valuable services.