Dublin boss Tommy Lyons praised his star man Dessie Farrell who played through the pain barrier to help the Blues down Derry in Clones.
Lyons said: "He was prepared to go in not fully fit. He said he wanted to play badly and he was prepared to put it all on the line for the county.
"When you can look a fella in the eye and see that he is prepared to do that then that's a huge motivating factor for the rest of the team."