Paddy Owens has been a Meath Hill favourite, both on and off the field, for many years now. In recent times 'The Hill' have been rapping on the intermediate championship door and although a key figure in this himself, Paddy says that he deserves none of the plaudits. Those plaudits, he argues, should be placed upon only one set of broad shoulders, those of trainer Tommy Dowd. Paddy is adamant that nobody else except for the former Meath sharpshooter could have brought about such a dramatic change to the club in the last few years. "Tommy has just been fantastic. He has brought us up to an intermediate standard of football on the field. He is a really good trainer and gets the best out of everybody. He is also a very sound fella," says Paddy. Having the Dunderry man (who runs Tommy Dowd Oil) as your trainer also has its additional benefits as Paddy points out. "As well as been a good trainer we get cheap oil from Tommy," he laughs. "Make sure you put that in the article now, I want him to see that I said that," he jokes. "Seriously though Tommy Dowd is a pure gentleman and he gets on well with everybody in the club here in Meath Hill. He has brought the team on a lot since he has been training us." This year Meath Hill got to the knockout stages of the junior championship after they finished level on points with Simonstown and Ratoath in their group. All three teams played five games, won three and lost two. Therefore a play-off scenario was necessary and Meath Hill got the perfect result by defeating Ratoath 2-9 to 0-10. However they fell to Simonstown at the next hurdle, 1-9 to 2-5. Paddy points out that had they made a better start to their championship campaign they could have actually topped the group. Although Meath Hill beat St. Paul's 0-11 to 0-9 in their first game in April, they went on to suffer two defeats in succession against Dunboyne and Ratoath respectively. The Dunboyne loss, coming on the back of that victory over St. Paul's, was especially hard to take as Meath Hill got mauled 2-10 to 1-7. A 0-8 to 0-5 defeat followed against Ratoath at the end of June, and with that the blue and whites had lost a huge amount of ground at the top of the table. Two defeats and only one win, was simply not good enough. "We got off to a bad start and that left us with a lot of work to do, in order to get back in with a chance. After we lost to Ratoath we knew that we would have to win our remaining two games to have any hope of qualifying," concedes Paddy. The hearts of Meath Hill fans were severely tested in their next championship outing against Athboy, as they fought out a marginal, dramatic one-point victory, 0-11 to 1-7. Their final group match pitted Meath Hill against Simonstown Gaels. Victory was vital for Paddy Owens and his teammates. "That was a huge game and we knew how much depended on us winning. We were delighted when we won and I would safely say it was the biggest boost this year for the team. We got two points and the win really turned things around." Ironically the Gaels of Simonstown would come back to haunt Meath Hill only weeks later in that aforementioned play-off match. Paddy played, as ever, an important role in bringing his team back from the brink when things seemed to be slipping away earlier in the championship. He has played centre half-forward for many years with the club and believes that intermediate is the grade of football that they deserve to be participating in. "We are good enough for intermediate and I think we would be strong enough to survive. It just all depends on the boys putting in the effort required." A loyal blue and white through and through, Meath Hill is the only club Paddy has ever represented. He grew up in the area and like many young kids drifted into the club at an early age. He has won "a few minor titles and that is it" he says, but is hoping the future can bring even more honours to fill the trophy cabinet. The Owens name has long been associated with the club and a quick scan through any Meath Hill team sheet tells its own story. John, Willie and Thomas are Paddy's brothers but there are other Owens' that play for the club and as he says himself, "we are all related." Paddy has been around long enough to realise that cracking the junior championship code is no easy job. He has been present at the birth of many Meath Hill opportunities, only to see them slip away time after time. He was there in 1997 when Skryne humbled Meath Hill, defeating them in the junior championship semi-final at Pairc Tailteann. Many people had tipped 'The Hill' to triumph that year, but alas. He was also on the losing side in the 1999 championship semi-final, this time at the hands of St. Paul's. In 2001 their semi-final curse struck again as Wolfe Tones overwhelmed Meath Hill and dumped them out of the championship at the penultimate stage. Such a record would be funny, if they weren't so tragic. There have been too many false dawns for Meath Hill in the past, and luck has failed to show its face, when they needed it most. There is talent and potential present in abundance, but like many other clubs in the entire country, they suffer from players leaving the parish. Many have travelled abroad and others are working, or living away from home. Meath Hill also contested Division 4A of the league this year and although their form was sporadic, they managed to retain their status and avoid the drop. In a tough, competitive division they faced sides such as Ballinabrackey, St. Mary's, Nobber and Kilbride. Next year Paddy Owens and his fellow Meath Hill compatriots will take to the field once again. In their minds will be the memories of all those missed chances down through the years. For many Gaels not associated with the club, Meath Hill are performing way beyond their potential every year. But this club are focused on success, focused on building for the future. "It was a big boost to stay up this year and hopefully next year we can continue to improve and go a few steps further. There are some good young players coming through," states Paddy. Under Tommy Dowd there is no doubt that they have improved immensely and all the younger players in the club look up to the former Meath All-Ireland winning captain. In the Royal County Yearbook in 1991 there was a player profile carried out on Dowd. When asked about his boyhood heroes he rattled out the names of the great Jimmy Keavney, Matt Connor and John Egan. But when quizzed on who the biggest influence on his career actually was, the Dunderry man replied, "Billy Bligh - my club coach." Eleven years is a lifetime in Gaelic football, and in that space of time Tommy Dowd has almost come full circle. For it is he who is the coach these days, and should you come back in a few years and ask Paddy Owens who the biggest influence on his career was, well, one has a sneaky feeling that it might just be Tommy Dowd - his club coach. In time to come 2002 may well be remembered as the year 'The Hill' came of age and began to firmly believe in themselves as intermediate bound footballers. If the club stand tall in the knowledge that they are good enough, the future is very bright indeed. Next year, it will be time for each Meath Hill footballer to become a Man Mountain on the field. After all, it is much harder to get over a mountain, than over a hill. Tweet

Most Read Stories