THE fact that Kerry bit the dust in last Sunday's Munster senior football championship final has sent a tremor through Dublin who will confront Wexford in the Leinster decider this week-end Sunday at Croke Park.

In a season to date in which the word 'upset' is now in danger of becoming over-used, pre-match favourites have cause to tread warily.

And no team will feel the heat more than the Dubs who are going for their fourth provincial title on the trot.

Manager Paul Caffrey needs no reminding of the level of expectation surrounding his side as they prepare to meet a Wexford team who have beaten L aois ar the semi-final stage and who fancy their chances of landing their first crown in over half-a-century.

They will certainly hope to fare rather better than their hurling brethren who were savagely outgunned by a fired-up Kilkenny in last Sunday's one-sided final in front of a crowd of less than 20,000.

Wexford's footballing pedigree has been considerably enhanced of late, of course.

They showed solid consistency during the National League and deservedly won promotion to Division Two.

But manager Jason Ryan, at 31 the second-youngest team boss in the country, has made it clear that his team are intent on delivering the title.

"We feel we can do it," he observes, "We have the skill, the confidence and the belief. We know all there is to know about the Dubs but they know a lot about us as well."

Wexford, for whom Mattie Forde, Philip Wallace, Redmond Barry, Ciaran Lyng and Colm Morris are key players, know that the Dubs in Croke Park are a rather different proposition to any other opponents.

"Yes, we know that they will maybe have over 50,000 fans behind them but that gives us an even bgrteraer incentive to show what we can do. I believe that we can respond to the challenge in the best possible way," insists Ryan.

Dublin will be without the suspended Collie Moran but manager Caffrey reckons that his team's blend of comparative youth and experience will serve them well.

"Wexford are in the final on merit and they have grown more comfortable at Croke Park. They will not be easily deflected from their bid to land the title. They have waited quite some time but we know, from our own perspective, that we have to rise to the occasion. It will be a real pressure game," says Caffrey.

Tomas Quinn, Jason Sherlock, Bryan Cullen, Barry Cahill, Alan Brogan , Shane Ryan and Conal Keaney are key players in a Dublin side which has not won an All Ireland title in thirteen years.

Even success on Sunday will not appease their fans - it's all or nothing this year, it would seem.