Just like their football counterparts, the Trim hurlers failed to advance from the group stages of the Senior Championship in 2007 because of an inferior score difference and it's now a case of looking to next year in the hope of adding a 27th title. When the group action concluded in mid-September it was Kiltale who edged Trim out of the third qualification position after they had both finished on five points - but Kiltale had a better points difference. Trim, who were managed by Declan Murray, with Martin McCormack, Tom Canty and Martin Dempsey acting as selectors, must have had mixed feelings about being drawn in Group A, which looked tricky, but with three teams emerging from each section to battle it out in the business end of the championship they had grounds for optimism as they went in search of the club's first Jubilee Cup annexation since 2001. For a lot of clubs that wouldn't seem like an awful long gap, but for one of the aristocrats of the small ball code in the county it's beginning to hurt. The time is fast approaching when they really need to take possession of the most significant piece of silverware in Meath hurling again. Trim's section included the two finalists from the previous year, reigning champions Rathmolyon and the side they shattered with a late goal in Trim last autumn, Dunboyne. Also in the mix were Navan O'Mahonys, the dark horses in the title race in the eyes of some observers, Kiltale, with so many talented young players coming through the ranks, and Na Fianna, winners of the Intermediate Championship in 2006. And it was a shock defeat against the Baconstown/Enfield combination - their only victory of the divisional campaign - in the fourth round that really stands out as the result that derailed Trim's challenge. They had been boosted before the start of the championship by the return of Jimmy Canty and Benny Keogh from Australia, but they could hardly have asked for a much tougher first round game than a meeting with Dunboyne, who are certainly overdue a Senior Championship title. That match took place at Kilmessan and, despite a spirited performance, Trim lost by five points (2-10 to 3-12). Things looked quite promising for the team in red when a Thomas Farrell goal boosted them to a 1-6 to 0-5 advantage during the first half, but they failed to add to their tally in that period as the St. Peter's men upped the tempo considerably. Stephen Moran and Neville Reilly bagged the goals which helped them to lead by 2-8 to 1-6 at the break and while Trim never threw in the towel, Dunboyne just had too much firepower, particularly with Neil Hackett a big influence. It certainly wasn't the end of the world for Trim, but they did need to get something from their second round meeting with Kiltale, also at Kilmessan. They achieved it in the shape of a hard-earned 1-9 to 0-9 victory which got them right back into contention for a qualification place. The most important score of a tight game came early on when Neil Heffernan netted after just five minutes, but they might have added a couple more goals when Kiltale 'keeper Ollie Regan saved from Heffernan in the first half and Canty at the three-quarter stage. They missed a number of chances in the opening period, but still managed to lead by 1-5 to 0-2 at the change of ends after playing with the aid of the wind. Kiltale battled well, increased the tempo of their play and cut the leeway to 0-7 to 1-7 by the end of the third quarter, but Trim defended strongly in a bid to protect their lead and, significantly, didn't allow Kiltale in for the goal they needed so badly. Next on the agenda for Trim were champions Rathmolyon at Longwood and the hero of the win here was undoubtedly substitute Joey Toole, one of the most outstanding hurlers in the county. Luckily for Trim, the Village hit 10 wides in the first half which meant they led by only 0-6 to 0-3 at the break. Toole had been introduced after 20 minutes and while it took him some time to find his feet, once he did he played a huge role in securing a second successive victory of the group campaign. Trim were level (0-7 each) by the three-quarter stage and as their display gained in intensity it took a couple of very good saves from Rathmolyon goalkeeper Stephen Ennis to prevent them from forging ahead. They did manage to edge to the front, before they were stunned by a goal from Mike Cole which left the champions 1-8 to 0-10 to the good. Substitute Alan Smith looked to have secured no more than a share of the spoils for Trim when he slotted over an equaliser, but 'cometh the hour, cometh the man'. That man was Toole who notched two late points, one of them from a '65', to snatch a dramatic victory and give his side's campaign what looked like a vital injection of points and confidence. It finished 0-13 to 1-8. That victory left them on four points from a possible six and very much in the hunt for a knockout slot, but from the highs of that late, late victory over champions Rathmolyon came a real low as they were brought back down to earth with a shuddering bang by Na Fianna, who were in their first year in the top flight. This was one of the biggest upsets in the Senior Championship in many a long day, but there was no denying that Na Fianna deserved their moment in the sun, even though it took a late goal to claim a most famous victory over one of Meath hurling's real powerhouses. The first half was a big struggle for Trim as scores proved hard to come by, but they got moving in the closing stages of the period and were behind by the minimum (0-4 to 0-5) when the whistle sounded for half-time. A couple of goals helped to sustain the town side after that, but just as they had caught Rathmolyon late in the previous round, Na Fianna inflicted the same sort of misery on them this time. Substitute Davy Lyons emerged as the hero for Na Fianna as he pounced for a late goal to earn his side a 1-11 to 2-7 victory and leave Trim's knockout prospects hanging very much in the balance. With four of the five qualifying rounds out of the way, Dunboyne were on top of the pile on six points, followed by Trim, Kiltale and Rathmolyon on four and Navan O'Mahonys and Na Fianna on three. It was all to play for as the final round approached, with Trim facing into a tough assignment against O'Mahonys at Kilmessan. Inconsistency had been the name of the game for Trim up to that stage as they had won twice and lost twice. The only thing that was missing was a draw and that duly arrived as the game with O'Mahonys ended level (2-11 each). It was a match of impressive marksmen on both sides, with O'Mahonys' full-forward Derek McMullen scoring 2-7 and Trim's centre half-forward Joey Toole getting 1-6, while Neil Heffernan notched 1-2 for the Reds. His goal came after six minutes and helped them to a 1-1 to 0-0 lead, but the advantage was down to the minimum (1-6 to 1-5) at the break and it was very much all to play for. McMullen's second goal had O'Mahonys ahead for the first time three minutes into the second period, but Toole blasted home a penalty 10 minutes later and Trim were in front by 2-10 to 2-8. McMullen slotted over two frees to level the scores, before Toole regained the lead for Trim. However, O'Mahonys had the final say when Richie Hogan sent over a magnificent sideline cut to secure a draw and ensure that neither side had any further interest in the competition. In the other matches in the section that day Rathmolyon trounced Na Fianna by 16 points and Dunboyne drew with Kiltale and when the final calculations were made it became clear that Trim were eliminated - but only just. Dunboyne finished on top of the group with seven points, one ahead of champions Rathmolyon, with Kiltale and Trim behind them tied on five. O'Mahonys were out of the hunt on four and bottom were Na Fianna on three, despite that sensational win over Trim. With Trim and Kiltale both drawing their last matches in the division nothing had changed as far as their score difference was concerned and Kiltale scraped into the third qualifying place. It was a very disappointing way for Trim's championship to come to an end and they must still be wondering how it all went so wrong against Na Fianna, especially in light of Rathmolyon's subsequent runaway success over the same opposition. Next year it will be seven years since Trim last carried the Jubilee Cup out the gates of their local St. Loman's Park. It's a situation they will want to rectify very soon. time to re-group When Trim opened their Senior Football Championship campaign last April with a victory over St. Patrick's it provided the team with a much-needed boost after a less than encouraging run-up to the battle for the Keegan Cup. Manager Davy Nelson, the man who coached Navan O'Mahonys to a final victory over Trim a decade ago, parted company with the club following an A League defeat to Walterstown and with experienced defender David Hegarty announcing his retirement on the Thursday before the 2007 championship commenced it was certainly a less than satisfactory preparation. Add to those problems the fact that Sean Murphy, Barry Sheridan and Paddy Hegarty had opted out of the senior panel and Frankie Murphy and Eoin McGrath were in Australia and Trim's prospects of figuring in the shake-up for the title appeared far from promising. Trim have suffered their fair share of disappointments as they continue to search for a first SFC triumph since 1962. Apart from the final loss to O'Mahonys in '97, they also were defeated by Dunshaughlin in the 2002 decider and the fear is that the opportunity to bridge an ever-lengthening gap that now stretches back 45 years has passed them by for the time being at least. Last year represented the first time in five campaigns that they failed to reach the semi-finals as they made a rather tame exit at the quarter-final stage against Navan O'Mahonys and when they went into this year's championship on the back of so much turmoil it was clear that they would have their work cut out to even make it to the last eight. That impression proved justified, but only just, as they missed out very marginally on prolonging their interest in the competition because of an inferior score difference. Trim were drawn in Group C along with St. Patrick's, Walterstown, Seneschalstown and last year's intermediate champions Rathkenny and commenced their campaign with what looked like a potentially tricky assignment against the Stamullen men at Dunshaughlin - especially after losing their manager so close to the game. By that stage a management team made up of Kevin Walsh and Seamus Brennan was in place and the players responded positively to the challenge when they got the ball rolling with a 0-15 to 1-7 victory to give their qualification hopes the required early boost. St. Patrick's opened up a 1-5 to 0-5 lead at the interval, but positional switches made a decisive difference for Trim in the second half which they won by 0-10 to 0-2. Ronan Fitzsimons switched to midfield and Darren Fay moved to centre half-back and these were among the moves that helped to sway the game in their favour. Derek Donohoe, Michael Lowther, Paul Gilsenan, who contributed six points, and young Neil Heffernan were key attacking figures as Trim scored with regularity in the second half to be five clear at the end. After a less than tranquil lead-up to the championship that certainly represented a very satisfactory outcome. However, they failed to make it back-to-back victories when new boys Rathkenny caught them late at Kilberry to mark their return to the senior grade with a dramatic victory. This was a very patchy Trim performance and they trailed by 0-4 to 0-5 at the break, but despite having substitute Shane Ashe sent off in the last quarter they still managed to push ahead as Paul Gilsenan and Neil Heffernan impressed in attack. They were two points to the good with three minutes remaining, but Rathkenny were determined to win what was their first Senior Championship match in the best part of 85 years and responded brilliantly to score two points and draw level. There was time for a winner as Thomas Martin slotted over a great score to make it 0-11 to 0-10 and signal scenes of wild celebration. With the championship being run off in smaller groups this year Trim knew there was urgency attached to their third round meeting with Seneschalstown at Dunshaughlin and they answered the call with an impressive 2-7 to 0-9 victory which looked highly unlikely for much of the match. They were poor in the first half and trailed by 0-3 to 0-7 at the interval and when Seneschalstown stretched their lead to 0-9 to 0-3 early in the second period Trim looked doomed to a second successive defeat. But, to their credit, they turned it around as they were aided by a typically brilliant display from Darren Fay. With Robert Brennan being switched to mark the dangerous Brian Sheridan their defence tightened up considerably, while the returning Frankie Murphy helped them to get a grip on the game in the middle. Heffernan was again a big influence in attack and from a position of near hopelessness Trim took over. Goals have a habit of winning games and the two that Trim got in the second period, courtesy of a Paul Gilsenan penalty and Heffernan, steered them in the direction of the winning post. With four points from a possible six they were in a strong position to earn a quarter-final slot, especially as their last group assignment was against struggling Walterstown who were pointless and trying to avoid a relegation dogfight at that stage. The Blacks may have been struggling up to their meeting with Trim at Kilmessan, but they found their form with a vengeance to inflict a whopping 12-point (2-15 to 1-6) defeat which ultimately sounded the death knell to Trim's hopes of making it out of the group. Significantly, the injured Darren Fay was an absentee and his presence was sorely missed as the defence was torn apart. Under-strength Trim managed only a solitary point from play and after a promising start when Paul Gilsenan notched the opening point of the game, they were outclassed for lengthy spells. Walterstown led by 1-4 to 0-1 and 1-7 to 0-2 during the opening period, with Sean Callaghan getting their first goal, but a goal from a Gilsenan penalty helped Trim to reduce the deficit to 1-2 to 1-7 at the change of ends and they had some hope. However, their prospects of making a successful recovery weren't helped by a number of missed chances and Walterstown pushed their advantage out to 1-13 to 1-5, before John Geoghegan added another goal for the Blacks to secure a runaway victory. Trim had completed their group campaign at that stage and had secured four points from a possible eight after two wins and two defeats. They could still qualify, but required other results to go their way, while there was also the painful possibility that they might end up in a battle against relegation. Thankfully, the latter scenario didn't unfold as Walterstown ended up tailed off at the bottom of the section on three points and faced into a fight for survival. But Trim didn't qualify either because that heavy defeat inflicted by the Blacks took its toll. Rathkenny did extremely well to top the group on five points, with Seneschalstown gaining the second quarter-final spot on four and a points difference of plus five. St. Patrick's and Trim also finished on four and were tied for third position on group points. That's where Trim fell short because they were on minus four, compared to minus two for the Stamullen men who went through to a preliminary quarter-final meeting with Navan O'Mahonys which they lost. It was very much a case of so near and yet so far for Trim, but the departure of Davy Nelson so close to the championship hardly helped and with several players missing it wasn't a major surprise that they failed to progress. "It was hard to take when he left a week before our first game in the championship," said Trim's Fergal Flanagan. "Kevin Walsh and Seamus Brennan had been his selectors and they took over from there. "It wasn't the ideal way to go into the championship, but the players responded very well and we won out first game against St. Patrick's. Then we lost our second round match against Rathkenny by only a point. "After that we beat Seneschalstown and the only game we were well beaten in during the championship was against Walterstown in the fourth round. Darren (Fay) was a huge loss to us for that particular match. We had other injuries too and had to start two players who were carrying injuries." Being without players was really the story of Trim's year and was clearly a big hindrance to progress. "Joe Tighe emigrated and Frankie Murphy and Eoin McGrath were away early on," Flanagan added. "Some other players stepped down from the senior panel and we were well depleted overall." Having lost finals in 1997 and 2002 and reached a number of semi-finals also, Trim's big hope is that the opportunity to win the Keegan Cup hasn't passed them by. "This team is changing and we have a lot of young players coming through," Flanagan pointed out. "I think that all is not lost. We just need to regroup for next year and start from there." Tweet

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