Four-in-a-row for Vocational footballers
November 27, 2010Former Cortown player Kit Henry was once again at the helm, having led the county to the previous three provincial annexations, and the manager revealed before the start of the championship in mid-January that there had been little opportunity for preparation due to the atrocious weather which gripped the country in such a vicious manner.
A training session was held at Dunganny a week before Meath opened their Leinster Championship campaign against Offaly and with 34 players participating, the commitment was unquestionably there to make a serious assault on yet another provincial title.
The panel was boosted by the inclusion of players from Kells and Ratoath and it appeared that Meath would enter the competition at the semi-final stage until a late application from Offaly was accepted. The opener against the Faithful County took place at Dunganny and resulted in a runaway victory for the home side on a 5-17 to 2-4 score line.
However, it was Offaly who made the more productive start and boosted by an early goal from Andrew Munnelly they led by 1-2 to 0-4 after 10 minutes. Interestingly, Munnelly lives in Meath and attends school in Offaly and his score suggested that this might turn out to be a stern test for Henry's side.
But that's not how it turned out and once Danny McGovern from Kells blasted to the net a minute after Munnelly's goal Meath were in control. They were almost out of sight at the interval with a 2-12 to 1-3 advantage after McGovern had brought his overall tally to 2-2 and Andy O'Brien (four), Liam Tolan (three), Bryan McMahon, Phelim Dowling and Ryan Tighe had contributed the other points.
Meath pushed further clear in the second period when McMahon, Tolan and substitute Fionn Ferguson found the net and the 22-point victory set up a semi-final meeting with Longford at a foggy Pairc Tailteann a week later.
Meath started as if they were going to coast to a comprehensive win and held a 1-8 to 0-1 lead at the interval, but the second half was a struggle as they added just two points and the final whistle came as a relief with Longford having reduced the deficit to just four at 2-3 to 1-10.
McGovern and Dowling scored points for Meath inside the opening minute and with Tolan and Bobby O'Brien also splitting the uprights they were four ahead after as many minutes. McGovern added two more and the brilliant Tolan and Andy O'Brien increased the advantage to seven points as the home team impressed.
Things got even better when McMahon goaled after McGovern and Tolan provided the spade work and with a 10-point cushion at the change of ends Meath looked home and hosed.
Bobby O'Brien supplied the first of Meath's two second half points, but boosted by a goal from Bernard Dempsey Longford cut the deficit to 1-2 to 1-9. With the visitors growing in confidence goalkeeper Conor McHugh came to Meath's rescue when he saved from Oisin Farrell, but he was beaten late in the game when Kyle Fitzmaurice scored the losers' second goal.
Meath were four points clear at the end and had plenty to work on ahead of the final against Wicklow after giving away a couple of soft goals and failing to take many of the chances they created. Still, semi-finals are all about winning and the prospect of maintaining their dominance in Leinster was very much alive.
The decider took place at Parnell Park, Dublin, against a Wicklow team which had eliminated Dublin at the semi-final hurdle and with 14 of their points coming from play Meath ran out winners by 2-15 to 0-6 to become the first county to win the provincial title four years in succession.
Meath were under pressure in the early stages and Wicklow scored the first two points. It might have been a bigger lead only for a fine save from team captain McHugh to deprive Eoin Devlin of a goal. McGovern gave Meath a boost with a point and the Wicklow lads held a slender 0-2 to 0-1 lead at the end of a low-scoring opening quarter which they had dominated possession wise, but kicked five wides.
McMahon had Meath level with a point and they struck the front on 21 minutes when Cian O'Brien netted. That score provided the spark they needed and points from Tighe, Andy O'Brien, Bobby O'Brien and Sean Sheridan helped open up a 1-6 to 0-2 interval advantage.
Bobby O'Brien pointed within a minute of the restart and boosted by a Cian O'Brien goal after vital approach work by Tolan Meath were clear at 2-10 to 0-4 by the three-quarter stage. It was all over bar the shouting and it was a proud moment for McHugh when he was presented with the Gael Linn Cup.
All-Ireland semi-finals have often brought disappointment for Meath in recent years and there was more of the same in mid-February when they met Cork at Templemore where the Rebel County finished strongest to win by 0-16 to 2-7.
Meath had to field without full-forward Andy O'Brien who had sustained a collarbone injury in a skiing accident and in his absence regular centre-back Paddy Haslam started in the No. 14 position, with Paddy Kennedy slotting in at the heart of the defence. O'Brien was a big loss, but Meath started superbly and were ahead by 1-3 to 0-0 after just seven minutes.
Tolan scored three early points, two of them from play, and Haslam notched the goal after a McMahon pass. Cork hadn't played a competitive match since winning a sixth successive Munster title in early January and with the team in red looking rusty hopes of a Meath win were high.
Michael Vaughan got Cork off the mark with a point and as they gradually found their feet McHugh came to Meath's rescue when he turned Declan Murphy's shot over the crossbar. Tolan (two) and Dowling pointed to keep the Royal County comfortably in front, but Cork did the brunt of the scoring after that and were only two points adrift at the interval, 0-7 to 1-6.
Meath had wind advantage in the second period, but they had a scare within four minutes of the restart when McHugh made another great save, this time from a penalty to deny Dara Ring. Cork got back to level terms with a brace of points from Brian Hurley and after missing several chances they hit the front when Ring slotted over.
McMahon gave Meath a big boost and a 2-6 to 0-10 lead with a fortunate goal at the end of the third quarter, but Cork were soon level again thanks to points from Hurley and substitute Patrick Cronin. Haslam edged Meath back in front, but with Hurley scoring three of their final four points Cork finished best to be three clear at the final whistle.
It was a huge disappointment for Meath who had failed to build on such a productive start and they were left to contemplate what might have been when Cork finished the job by defeating Monaghan by 3-8 to 2-7 in the final.
"We probably had one of the biggest panels I've worked with in my time as manager," Kit Henry said as he looked back on the campaign. "Other years we would have 19 or 20. We were winning Leinster titles and getting pipped at the post in All-Ireland semi-finals and a final.
"This year we had a panel of 34. It was an open-ended panel. I believe that's the only way to operate, the fairest way. We set out to try to retain the Leinster title and did that with wins over Offaly, Longford and Wicklow. But the All-Ireland eluded us again. That's three semi-finals and a final we have lost. It's a lot of disappointment and they were all narrow defeats.
"We made a great start in this year's semi-final against Cork and opened up a six-point lead. That was our game plan, to start well and take the game to them. But Cork were very good. They were strong and physical and had a brilliant corner-forward in Brian Hurley. He scored nine points. He's some player, good left and right. He has everything.
"From our own point of view we just weren't clinical enough up front. We also needed to play the ball a little quicker. But the lads put in a huge effort. The panel included some very good players, but it just didn't work out against Cork.
"I think the losing of the game was taking off Danny McGovern. He had undergone a fitness test with the Meath minors the day before. He just had nothing else to give. And then he didn't make the cut with the minors. He was scoring four and five points a game for us. It was a huge upset to our plans."
So what does Henry think is the missing ingredient that's preventing Meath from making the breakthrough at All-Ireland level?
"I believe we need to run internal leagues in the schools and run competitions with surrounding counties," he added. "You would see a lot more players. In Cork they have north, south, east and west teams playing and they pick a panel from them."
Henry appreciates that the work being carried out towards the promotion of Gaelic games in the schools is of vital importance to the county overall. And he also acknowledges the great work of Dudley Farrell.
"Dudley is doing serious work," Henry said. "He brought 35 under-15s to a camp in Gormanston in early August. It was great to see these lads get a chance. They were lads who had slipped through the net when it came to the development squads.
"Brendan Murphy dealt with goalkeeping, Trevor Giles did the frees and Dudley did a session himself. James Lovett and Brian Carberry were also involved. It was a first class job. An under-15 development squad from Louth also came up to play us."
Liam Tolan again played a major role in Meath's VEC success this year, but tragically he was killed in a car accident in May. Henry regarded him as a tremendous talent.
"He had the heart of a lion and was as brave as they come," Henry said. "He was exceptional, a great role model for lads coming through."
The Meath team in the All-Ireland semi-final was: Conor McHugh (Oldcastle); Alastair Doyle (Dunshaughlin), Conor McGill (Ashbourne), Gavin Eiffe (Ratoath); Matthew Devine (Ashbourne), Paddy Kennedy (Dunshaughlin), Ryan Tighe (Oldcastle); Phelim Dowling (Ashbourne, 0-1), Cian O'Brien (Ratoath); Sean Sheridan (Longwood), Danny McGovern (Kells), Bobby O'Brien (Ratoath); Bryan McMahon (Ratoath, 1-0), Paddy Haslam (Ratoath, 1-1), Liam Tolan (Ashbourne, 0-5). Subs - Anthony Owens (Nobber) for McGovern, Neil Shortall (Ashbourne) for Kennedy, Colm McCullagh (Dunshaughlin) for O'Brien. Tweet
