Kerry hat-trick hero David Clifford was delighted with the character shown by the Kingdom in the windy surrounds of Pomeroy as they fought back from a difficult position to beat Tyrone.
With both sides entering the encounter on the back of successive defeats, and with the Red Hands moving clear with their opponents down to 13 players, it looked like Jack O'Connor’s side were about to be dragged into a relegation battle.
But Clifford’s return from a black card sparked a revival with the Fossa man completing his hat-trick.
It’s the second time he has managed that feat having hit 3-06 against Galway in the 2021 league while he has doubled up against Monaghan, Kildare, Clare and Louth as his reputation as a goal scorer extraordinaire continues to grow.
"It was big enough, yeah," Clifford told RTÉ Sport’s Darren Frehill of the win.
"League points are never the be all and end all, it’s more about performances and finding players and learning a bit about yourself.
Despite difficult conditions, Kerry's David Clifford and Tyrone's Darragh Canavan put on attacking masterclasses when their side met in Pomeroy on Sunday afternoon.
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"The fact that is was changed, we were actually delighted with, coming into a club ground was always going to be a good battle, beautiful facilities here.
"It was nice, obviously missed a couple of chances as well but nice to be getting chances," he added of his goals.
The match was originally scheduled to take place at O’Neill’s Healy Park but worsening weather ensured the move to Pomeroy, home of 2021 Player of the Year Kieran McGeary and current team-mate Frank Burns.
Plunkett Park has a reputation for tricky conditions and so it proved – and Clifford felt the home side probably dealt with the elements better despite the result.
"It was kind of a crosswind, it didn’t actually really favour any goal.
"They got a couple of good two-pointers and we got no two-pointers, so it was a tough wind."
Watch Armagh v Dublin in the Allianz Football League on Saturday from 7.25pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app.
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