It's fast approaching a decade since Rathmolyon last won the Meath Senior Hurling Championship and there were times during the campaign gone by when the club's supporters might have been tempted to think that a nine-year gap just might be bridged. Rathmolyon have won the Jubilee Cup twice in their history and what an extra special day it was for the Village back in 1993 when they enjoyed their breakthrough triumph with a sensational one-point final victory over Wolfe Tones thanks to a late late point from Mike Cole who was at the height of his young powers around that time. Of course, Rathmolyon went on to regain the most important piece of silverware in Royal County hurling in 1996, but winning it for a third time has proven frustratingly difficult to achieve since then, and that was again the case in the 2005 championship. Disappointingly for Rathmolyon, they lost only once in the group stages, yet they didn't manage to reach the business end of the competition as they were left to rue a draw against Navan O' Mahonys which was to prove so significant in the long run. They finished their five-match group campaign on seven points and in other years that might well have been sufficient to maintain a team's interest in the battle for the championship. But not so for Rathmolyon in the 2005 campaign. Their section, as well as O'Mahonys, also included Killyon, who were to take the competition by storm, Longwood, Kiltale and Boardsmill and it was a section from which they could justifiably entertain very realistic hopes of making it through to the semi-final stages. It will be recalled that Rathmolyon made a fantastic start to their Senior Championship campaign 12 months earlier when they knocked six goals past Trim at Boardsmill on the way to a highly encouraging 6-7 to 2-12 triumph which suggested that they might well be one of the front runners for outright success. And a year down the road in late May, 2005 they again shaped very encouragingly in the opening round of the competition when they defeated Longwood by five points (2-14 to 2-9) at the same venue. They did plenty of good work in the early stages of the opening half and a goal from Mike Cole - who was still such a vital part of their team a dozen years after he got the score that earned their first Senior Championship title - helped them to a commanding 1-7 to 0-1 lead. However, they failed to maintain the desired intensity and that allowed Longwood to work their way back into contention. When the half-time whistle sounded Rathmolyon's advantage had been cut to just four points at 1-7 to 1-3, but they came to life again after the change of ends and a goal from Kevin Fagan helped them into a good sized lead once more. They had Eamonn Doran sent off after he received a second yellow card in the closing stages, while Longwood had a player dismissed in a separate incident. The team in white scored a late goal, but Rathmolyon had already done more than enough to be sure of making the desired winning start to their championship campaign on a day when Gary and Neil Cole, Fagan and Doran proved particularly influential. It was off to Kilmessan for a second round meeting with O'Mahonys and after that bright opening Rathmolyon had to be optimistic that they could make it back-to-back victories. A Mike Cole goal from a free gave them the early initiative and they held a minimum margin (1-6 to 0-8) advantage at half-time as the accuracy of Ciaran Dunphy kept the town side in the hunt. When Cole scored a superb second goal with eight minutes of normal time to play Rathmolyon must have been contemplating the happy situation of having a maximum four championship points safely in the bag after two rounds. However, Andrew Snow found the net for O'Mahonys to give them real hope and, after the sides had exchanged points, Dunphy slotted over the equaliser to earn the Navan men a draw. What implications that particular score was to have for Rathmolyon's qualification hopes in the long run. They suffered only one defeat from their five games in the group stages and it came in round three when they were well beaten (2-15 to 0-13) by a Kiltale side that was to make it all the way to the semi-finals where they were edged out by Kildalkey. Having dropped three points from two matches it was vitally important that Rathmolyon responded positively to a potentially disastrous situation and the reality was that they really needed to win their remaining two group games against Killyon and Boardsmill. Killyon were their opponents in a fourth round encounter at Boardsmill and when Rathmolyon look back at the way they won that game and also reflect on the championship the Hill of Down side were to enjoy subsequently they must wonder at what might have been. It will surely have made them realise that they are very close to the required standard to win the championship. They were in good point-scoring form in the first half and that helped them build up a 0-10 to 1-4 lead at the break, the goal helping to keep Killyon in the hunt. But Rathmolyon got a goal of their own in the second period and that score from Kevin Fagan proved significant as they pushed clear to win by seven points on a 1-16 to 1-9 score line. Johnny Murray, Mark Lynch, Mike Cole, who was their leading scorer with eight points, and Fagan proved particularly effective in a success that provided a major boost. Their final group assignment against Boardsmill took place at Dunsany and Rathmolyon knew they simply had to win this game and hope that other results went in their favour if they were to achieve mission number one for the championship and make it through to the knock-out stages. Well, they kept the first side of that bargain when they defeated the 'Mill by 2-11 to 1-10. They looked to be in some bother at the interval when the losers held a two-point (1-4 to 0-5) advantage, but the Rathmolyon men upped the tempo in the second period when Kevin Fagan and Mike Cole notched the all-important goals which secured the win. However, the cruel reality for Rathmolyon was that other results didn't go their way and they were out of the championship despite the fact that they had lost only once. With Kiltale defeating O' Mahonys and Killyon getting the better of Longwood it meant that those two clubs qualified for the last four and Rathmolyon were left to wonder what might have been achieved - especially if they didn't concede that late point against O'Mahonys in the second round which they must have viewed as a lost opportunity. "We were very disappointed not to reach the semi-finals," said Rathmolyon secretary Linda Fitzpatrick as she looked back on the Senior Championship campaign. "We were sure we were getting through with seven points. In any other year we would probably have qualified for the semi-finals. "We beat Boardsmill in the last round and needed other results to go our way, but unfortunately that didn't happen. At the end of the day the draw against Navan O'Mahonys in the second round when they got a late equalising point was very costly for us. We lost only one game in our group, against Kiltale, but we still didn't qualify. "Somebody was saying that a few years ago we got through on four points. Then not to get through this year on seven points was very tough." Rathmolyon, who were coached by Westmeath man James Heffernan for the 2005 campaign, won three of their group matches and among their successes was that clearcut seven-point victory against a Killyon side which was to go on and win the competition. "I remember when we beat Killyon in the fourth round at Boardsmill we were jumping around," Linda Fitzpatrick added. "We really thought we were going to qualify for the semi-finals. This year we were really hoping to get through. Had we managed to beat O Mahonys who knows! Had we beaten them we were right." Rathmolyon know what it s like to savour the joy and utter satisfaction that lifting the Jubilee Cup brings to the club and the local community. It generates a tremendous feeling of achievement - the feeling they enjoyed so thoroughly back in 1993 and 1996. But sport, including the wonderful game of hurling, can be very cruel too and Rathmolyon can justifiably feel disappointed by the way the Senior Championship worked out for them in 2005. Their consistent form just wasn't good enough and wasn't rewarded the way it might have been. However, their showing in the championship certainly suggested that they are close to the required standard to seriously challenge for the top prize in Meath hurling in 2006. Next year will mark a decade since the Jubilee Cup last paid a visit - perhaps a good year to welcome it back. Tweet

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