Celine Nulty eats, sleeps and breaths Gaelic Football. As a player, coach and most recently as an administrator she loves the game with a passion. Royal County caught up with the hard working Meath Hill secretary and reviewed an eventful year for the North Meath Club. " '98 was a disappointing year for us really. The last two years were very good but we failed to gained ultimate success. Perhaps this year we lost a little of our appetite and hunger for the game ". Celine of course refers to the 'Hills decidedly unlucky exit from the Junior Championship at the group stages. The North Meath outfit got off to a proverbial flyer, hammering An Gaeltacht 6 - 14 to 1 - 08 in the first round at Rathkenny but were brought back down to earth with a bump at the second hurdle. St. Mary's pipped them by a point 0 - 9 to 0 - 8. Celine recalls " One of St. Mary's first half scores was very controversial. The umpire signalled for a point and the referee agreed with him. Many of the Meath Hill faithful were sure the ball actually went wide." Rataoth proved third round opposition and once again there was a nail biting finish with the south Meath team running out 2 - 12 to 1 - 12 winners. " We led at half time by 1 - 7 to 1 -4 but they came back at us in the second half . Emmet Boyle had a chance to level the scores in the final moments but his shot for goal narrowly missed. On another day it would have hit the net" she recalls. Successive victories over Enfield, Skryne and Baconstown meant that the ' Hill were depending on other results going their way but lady luck conspired to deprive them of a knockout place. Indeed many Meath Hill followers are still talking about the "wide point" in the St. Mary's match which cost them a draw and eventually a knockout place. However, the Hill's disappointment was tempered by their Junior 'B' team who annexed div 4 B of the '97 All County league. " We brought in Paddy Carr from Walterstown to look after the 'B' squad. The final was held over until after Christmas and we overcame Dunsany 2 - 9 to 0 - 12. Most of the lads would be in their teens so it was a great achievement for us." Celine added. This victory completed a unique double for the club. The Junior 'A' squad also winning Div 4 honours in '97. With two Cups plus the Ground Of The Year Award to show off, the club's dinner dance proved to be a huge success. Held in the Oasis, Carrickmacross in mid May it was well attended and everyone enjoyed a good night by all accounts. "County Board Chairman Fintan Ginnity and Assistant Secretary Barney Allen attended and everyone really enjoyed themselves, " Celine enthused. Although the 'Hill failed to achieve success at adult level this year there will be one or two Cups on display at next years' dinner dance. The Meath Hill / Drumconrath combination annexed the Minor title with an exciting victory over Trim while the same combination picked up league honours at under 12 level. The 'Hill had only two representatives on the under 12 team ( Cathal Matthews and Gary Curtis ) and this dearth of talent was noted by the executive committee. Celine who is qualified to coach at adult level, Paddy Carr and a team of helpers set up an under age coaching scheme. Celine recalls " I remember one night in particular it was teaming rain and we didn't expect any one to turn up. 75 youngsters turned up on the night. It was unbelievable. Even the parents couldn't believe it". Celine is fullsome in her praise for all those who helped out during the coaching. " We had a great team of helpers and that made it all the easier. People like Martin Clarke, Michael Kieran, Anne Marie Maher, Sean Byrne, Michael Crosby, Lorney Duffy, Terry Kieran and Tom and Pat Matthews all lent a hand. We couldn't have done it without them." Celine's coaching activities doesn't finish with the Meath Hill juveniles however. Earlier in the year she was approached by the Meath Ladies County Board with a view to helping out with the under 12 team. Celine explains " I played for the Meath Ladies a few years ago and I was approached by Ollie Bowe ( Royal Gaels ) and David Carry (Drumbaragh ) and asked to help out. I was only too delighted. We won Leinster beating Wexford in the final. We also had victories over Dublin and Laois in the earlier rounds. " When Celine is not involved with Meath Hill or the Meath Ladies she plays for the local Ladies team. At the time of writing she was actually on crutches having picked up a serious injury while playing against Donaghmore / Ashbourne. " I went up to catch a ball and got a heavy shove in the back. I came down without the ball and turned over on my ankle. It was quite a bad break really. " Ever the willing worker Celine is also Treasurer of the Ladies Team. She explains " I was actually Chairperson for a while but this year I was voted in Treasurer. I think the job is a lot easier than chairperson. Having just completed her first year as secretary with the Meath Hill Club Celine is looking forward to the Championship next year. "I think we have a good chance next year. St, Mary's beat us by that controversial point and they went all the way to the final. If we had got a draw that day we would have made it to the knock out stages and anything could have happened. I am very optimistic about next year and I feel we have a very good chance." And will she be running for her second term in the administrative hot seat ? " Well that will depend on how everyone thought I did this year. It will be up to the A.G.M. to decide really." Expect Celine Nulty to be in the Secretary's chair again come the early spring. Meath Hill Master Dunsany in 1997 Division 4 BFL showdown Played in March, Meath Hill captured the 1997 B FL Division 4 title at the expense of Dunsany on a scoreline of 2-9 to 0-12. Late goals in each half from Paul Rooney and Paul Kieran, and a superb Ciaran Boyle penalty save paved the way for success. Dunsany were first out of the blocks and had two points on the scoreboard before Gerard Matthews responded for the Hill. Dunsany extended their lead with a further two scores, but two pointed Kieran frees and a fine effort from Dean Farrelly brought the sides level. Playing with a fresh impetus, the eventual winners added three more points courtesy of Kieran, and Rooney's opportunist goal placed them firmly in the driving seat. At the interval they held a 1-7 to 0-6 advantage. Early in the second half, Dunsany squandered a glorious opportunity when Tony Crocock's penalty was brilliantly saved by Boyle. They clawed their way back into contention, narrowing the gap to just two points, 1-9 to 0-10, with only ten minutes remaining. However, Kieran dealt their chances a killer blow when he punched the ball to the net, and secured the win and title for the north Meath club. Best for the winners were Kieran, Boyle, Gerard Matthews and Derek Nulty. Meath Hill - C. Coyle; N. Maguire, D. Nulty, J. Sheckleton; M. Sheckleton, P. Owens, B. Kieran; M. Breslin, J. Owens; S. Maher, D. Farrelly (0-1), P. Rooney (1-0); C. Maher, G. Matthews (0-1), P. Kieran (1-7). Subs - S. Martin, D. Sharkey Tweet

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