tampa

fully agree with you.

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 06/05/2015 19:23:06    1720998

2014 was a write off but progress was made in 2013.At this time of the year we haven't looked sharper for years. I have a feeling in me waters there's a big game in this side and I reckon we'll take a big scalp this summer

bert09 (Meath) - Posts: 1792 - 06/05/2015 19:59:13    1721009

I hope your right bert.. I feel there is something special to come from Meath this year..can't wait for the championship feeling g the buzz already!

blind ref (Meath) - Posts: 204 - 08/05/2015 20:43:07    1721678

Indeed, and I see good old Seanie bigging up the dubs. Can't wait for it.

bert09 (Meath) - Posts: 1792 - 08/05/2015 21:07:37    1721682

Beaten easily by Cavan last night... Anyone know the team that started?

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 11/05/2015 09:45:29    1722312

I don't have the team but was told it was 'very experimental and finishd with 5 lads who aren't currently on the panel'.
Wouldn't be too worried about the result.

SmallHouse (Meath) - Posts: 291 - 11/05/2015 11:45:40    1722370

Meath: Conor McHugh, James McEntee, Donncha Tobin, Davy Dalton, Darragh Smith, Brian Power, Nicky Judge, Sean Tobin, Adam Flanagan, Andy Tormey, Padraic Harnan, Damien Carroll, Bryan McMahon, Jamie Queeney, Eamon Wallace.
Subs: David Bray, Joey Wallace, Graham Reilly, Conor Downey, Padhraig Geraghty, Jonathan Lynch, Michael Flood.

Finished 2-14 to 1-08 in favour of Cavan. It wasn't as comfortable for them as the scoreline suggests though. Davy Dalton was very impressive in the fullback line as were Donncha Tobin and Brian Power. Seán Tobin kicked some nice scores and Queeney was showing pretty well before he went off with a knock. Menton looked to have picked up an injury in the warm up also. Biggy came on and tried to run directly at their defence but he lost the ball in the tackle about three times before he sensibly hand passed it on the fourth occasion.

It must be pointed out however that conditions were atrocious and under normal circumstances, the game probably wouldn't have gone ahead. The pitch was quite small and uneven, particularly at the lake end. It looked very soft and there were puddles clearly visible on it. Not a patch on Stamullen last weekend, that's for sure. A dog ran about the place and did his/her business in front of the Meath dugout before the game. The absence of floodlights became a concern near the end. Advertised as 6.30pm, the ball was only thrown in at 7.10pm. I understand that this was to mark the opening of Dolan Park, but I think the speeches etc. could've been cut short as the rain continually pelted down. Announcing about the passing of Seán Tobin's father and his connections with Cavan football during the first half as a "by the way" while Seán himself was on the pitch was nothing short of disgraceful. Finally, Cavan lived up to the stereotypes in typical fashion by charging €10 for adults and €5 for students even though it was announced that "this is not a fundraiser". A bit steep in my opinion. This event was poorly orgainsed and was quite unfair on both sets of players and supporters. I would read very little into the result.

MarkMyWords (Meath) - Posts: 498 - 11/05/2015 13:12:03    1722414

Bloody hell MMW that sounds like a complete joke of a set-up! I was a bit baffled as to why the game was throwing in so late given that a mid-afternoon start would have been a better option. Doesn't sound like it went too smoothly.

SmallHouse (Meath) - Posts: 291 - 11/05/2015 13:29:01    1722423

I don't think the venue was fit to host an inter-county game tbh. The players had to negotiate a steep slope, fencing and some sort of drainage pipe to get from the dressing rooms to the pitch itself. There was rolled up wire lying behind the near goal end. At that same end there was a big wall running along the end line no more than 2/3 metres from the pitch which posed a big safety hazard especially with the poor under foot conditions.

MarkMyWords (Meath) - Posts: 498 - 11/05/2015 14:57:37    1722474

I always thought that before a club could host a county game, their ground had to be given the once-over by the authorities? I'm surprised at how bad the whole set-up sounded. Though it sounded very much like a renaming rather than a total refurb of the ground and pitch. In either case, you would think the club would wait a while to make sure everything was perfect rather than rushing the opening and having what sounded like a disappointing event.

SmallHouse (Meath) - Posts: 291 - 11/05/2015 16:13:21    1722512

Jesus sounds like Ramor got your man O'Reilly from Fawlty Towers to build that place, sounds nothing short of horrendous compared to what I saw in Stamullen the Sunday before.

Richieq (Meath) - Posts: 3734 - 11/05/2015 16:31:32    1722517

There's not many pitches in the county like St Pats of Stamullen -the're best club grounds inside the county. Most pitches inside our county have a paling/fence within 3m of the playing area and some within 2m!! Very few have the required 5m maybe 4-6 clubs in total.

browncows (Meath) - Posts: 2342 - 11/05/2015 18:36:24    1722558

Oh really?

Jokes aside, some of these "official openings" are fairly suspect alright. It seems if a club has no better fundraising ideas they resort to an "official opening" to get money in. I think in Boardsmill a few years ago they advertised a Meath Vs Westmeath double bill, challenges in hurling and football. The hurling challenge consisted of a very weak Meath team playing Lough Lene Gaels, a club side from Westmeath.

CastleBravo (Meath) - Posts: 1648 - 11/05/2015 18:42:09    1722560

browncows, this wasn't your usual 4ft fence. It was a brick wall around 10ft high, quite dangerous imo. Anyway, my main concern was the state of the pitch and while I agree that Stamullen is one of a kind, the least anyone should expect for a senior inter-county football match is a playing surface that is fit for purpose. I'm repeating myself in saying this but conditions underfoot were extreemly poor, there were puddles of water visible on the pitch and the surface particularly at the lake end was extremely uneven. Their training pitch looked more up to the task tbh. I just hope we don't hear of any other injuries in light of this.

MarkMyWords (Meath) - Posts: 498 - 11/05/2015 19:39:45    1722576

Aside from the grounds, who played well? Who didnt?

Meathgaa5 (Meath) - Posts: 339 - 11/05/2015 21:51:23    1722611

Ye I wouldn't worry too much about that result, especially not after seeing the team and reading what MarkMyWords put up, our first real test is in Navan in a month's time so we'll see who's fit and how they're playing then.

Htaem (Meath) - Posts: 8657 - 12/05/2015 08:59:25    1722631

Like I said, Donncha Tobin, Davy Dalton and Brian Power impressed me. Dalton in particular really put his hand up for a starting place next month. Seán Tobin kicked some fine scores and Queeney showed well until he went off. Tormey looked like he didn't want to be there and frankly, I wouldn't blame him. The conditions and small nature of the pitch didn't really suit Wallace's game either. Pretty sure Carroll gave the ball away for one of their goals. When given space and time, he can pick out excellent passes but if he's caught dwelling on the ball, possession is turned over nearly every time.

One thing I did notice was the high quality of ball kicked into the forwards. Their movement was in sync with the play outfield with well timed runs etc. so it was easier to play a suitable pass. I thought this was a problem during the league so it's nice to see an improvement on that front.

MarkMyWords (Meath) - Posts: 498 - 12/05/2015 13:09:02    1722750

I find it difficult to understand how anyone could think the first real test could be against a team who ended up in the bottom of Div 4! but opinion varies

browncows (Meath) - Posts: 2342 - 12/05/2015 14:12:28    1722799

It's a championship game browncows, one which I happen to think we'll win, however I consider all competitive games a test, maybe you don't but as you said yourself opinions vary.

Htaem (Meath) - Posts: 8657 - 12/05/2015 19:47:57    1722960

Ok 4 weeks to go,lets just hope we don't get any major injuries to key players..

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 12/05/2015 21:26:56    1723002