Since the publication of the last yearbook, Skryne finished 2007 on a high note by winning the Division 1 FL title for the first time. However, their hopes of reaching the business end of the SFC this year ended with narrow elimination at the group stages. On the plus side they put up a spirited showing against eventual champions Navan O'Mahonys in a fine match in round two of the SFC and lost by the narrowest margin to eventual winners Seneschalstown in the second round of the Feis Cup. However, their defence of their Division 1 FL title proved more problematic and Skryne eventually lost their top tier league status, managing just three wins from eleven starts and were demoted along with Dunderry. In 2007, Skryne reached the knockout stages of the SFC for the first time since winning their 12th senior championship title in 2004, but lost to Simonstown at the last eight stage. With county and club legend Trevor Giles at the helm, Skryne were drawn in the toughest of the three groups in the Commons Hardware SFC with Wolfe Tones (champions in 2006), Navan O'Mahonys (runners-up in the previous two years) and holders Seneschalstown for company. Added to the mix were two sides that also lost out at the last eight stage in 2007, Summerhill (who were eliminated by the eventual champions) and Rathkenny (in their first year back in senior ranks). The cup that commemorates club stalwart Tommy Mooney made its way home following Skryne's 1-14 to 1-5 win over newly-crowned SFC champions Seneschalstown at Walterstown on the last Sunday of November 2007. Seneschalstown may have been exhausted by their championship exploits, that also saw them take eventual All-Ireland club champions St Vincent's to a replay a Leinster opener. However, Skryne's first annexation of the Division 1 FL title was achieved without Jamie Jordan, Andrew Curry, David Lynch and James Hegarty while Brian Byrne had departed for Australia. Centre-back John Quinn departed with a suspected broken collar bone about 20 minutes in. However, boosted by a Mick O'Dowd goal it was 1-7 to 0-4 at the break. By the end Felim O'Rourke had six points to his name and fittingly the final score was posted by Giles. Popular club official Ray Mooney was on hand to present the cup that perpetuates his father's memory to David Rogan. Coincidentally, Skryne's SFC Group A opener was against Seneschalstown, again at Walterstown, on the last Saturday in April when they opened with a 1-12 to 0-8 success. The Tara-men had stars at both ends of the pitch in goalkeeper Patrick O'Rourke - one of the stars of the championship - while full-forward Kevin Mulvaney posted five points from play. Skryne led by 0-5 to 0-4 at the break but set down a marker with a Mick O'Dowd goal at the end of sweeping move involving John Quinn, David Rogan, David Hegarty and James Hegarty. Netminder O'Rourke denied 2007 SFC final man-of-the-match Brian Clarke a brace of goals while corner-back Vinny Reilly (who later won an SHC medal with Kilmessan) intervened to prevent county star Joe Sheridan from goaling in the second period. Overall tenacious defending restricted the champions to just four second-half scores. Eight days later, on a sunny Bank Holiday Sunday at Dunshaughlin, Skryne took on O'Mahonys - hoping for a repeat result of their championship meeting in June 2007 ( an 0-8 to 0-7 win at Seneschalstown) when the team in royal blue prevailed en route to topping Group B. There were never more than two points between the sides in a fine advertisement for Gaelic Football until O'Mahonys made burst for the finishing tape in the final minutes to win by 0-14 to 0-10 after the teams had been level on four occasions. An excellent Mick O'Dowd point was Skryne's highlight of the opening period which ended with them leading by 0-7 to 0-6 and they were just one point in arrears heading into the final minutes. Sporting the county's first choice colours, Skryne took on Summerhill (who were wearing Meath's alternative yellow jersey) in round three at Pairc Tailteann on the second Saturday in June. Skryne were in arrears for most of the hour but got back on level terms four times in the opening half, including when Giles netted from a penalty kick at the hospital end to leave it 1-3 to 0-6. At half-time they trailed by 1-4 to 0-10, but moving Kevin Mulvaney to midfield improved matters while Felim O'Rourke posted five second-half points (four from frees) to bring his total for the hour to 0-7. In the end a 1-11 to 0-16 defeat cost Skryne a place in the knockout stages. As things transpired the sides finished their five match programme with an identical score difference. Summerhill finished two points better off with three wins from five outings while Skryne had the reverse. With three matches played Skryne were fourth (of six) in the Group A standings. Now playing catch-up they faced into Rathkenny in round four at Seneschalstown on Friday, June 20. A Kevin Mulvaney point and a Mick O'Dowd goal within two minutes of the throw-in got Skryne off to a flying start. By half-time it the gap was up to seven points, 1-7 to 0-3, as Giles' men sought a second win in the group as well as to enhance their score difference. A brace of points from the player-manager left eight between the sides, 1-9 to 0-4, shortly after the restart. However, Skryne had to resist a late rally as Eamon O'Brien's men went in search of their first points of the campaign. In the end they were grateful for goalkeeper Patrick O'Rourke's fine save from Donal Curtis with about four minutes remaining for holding on for a minimum margin, 1-11 to 0-13 , success and their second win of the campaign. The Skryne custodian was keeping his fourth clean sheet of the campaign and he maintained his 100% shut-out record for the competition as he lined out af full-forward in the final group game. That feat was shared with Navan O'Mahonys Mark Brennan who wasn't between the posts for the Brews Hill side's opener against Wolfe Tones and kept his goal intact in seven subsequent outings. Skryne's destiny was in other hands going into the final round meeting with Wolfe Tones. They had to beat one of the championship favourites and hope that Summerhill would slip up against Seneschalstown in order to secure third place in the group and a quarter-final spot for the second year running. If Skyrne and Summerhill finished level on points in Group A that two-points defeat in round three to Mattie Kerrigan and Padraig Lyons' men would seal the Tara side's championship demise. On Wednesday, August 20 Summerhill faced Seneschalstown at Dunshaughin while at the same time Skryne took on Wolfe Tones at Pairc Tailteann. A brace of first-half Joe Sheridan goals lifted Seneschalstown and gave Skryne some hope of squeezing through. Skyrne were slow out of the blocks and found themselves 0-3 to 0-8 in arrears coming up to half-time. Boosted by the influentual Giles and a brace of Kevin Mulvaney goals their fortunes' were revived and it was 2-4 to 0-8 at the interval. Shortly after the restart, Skryne conceded their first goal of the campaign when John Tiernan netted while Darren McGrath was Wolfe Tones' other goal scorer in a 2-12 to 2-9 success following an entertaining tussle. Meanwhile at Dunshaughin, Summerhill recovered from the concession of those two Sheridan goals to win by 0-16 to 2-6 to oust Skryne and claim third spot in the group. Intermediates St Michael's were dispatched by the narrowest margin, 1-11 to 0-13, in the opening round of the Feis Cup. Skryne's interest in the tertiary competition ended with a 1-11 to 1-12 defeat by holders and eventual winners Seneschalstown in round two. Maintaining consistency in league football is difficult given the unavailability of players for a variety of reasons. At the end of the 2008 campaign Skryne found themselves demoted along with Dunderry who finished at the foot of the table. Still, O'Mahonys showed it is possible to make an impact in the SFC while operating in the second tier of league football. On the plus side Skryne put in a strong bid to retain their B FL Division 1 title by securing a final berth against Wolfe Tones. In the JFC, Skryne's second string side narrowly missed out on a quarter-final place, finishing third behind neighbours Ratoath and Group D winners Longwood, the only side to defeat them. Two wins, two draws and one defeat saw them finish just one point behind the eventual beaten finalists in the round robin phase. Minor honours for Ryan's men At underage level the Tara mean have been making great strides in recent years with their U16's landing the championship last year, so it was no surprise that Skryne were in the mix for the MFL Division 2 title. At the end of October David Ryan, who represented the club on the Leinster winning Meath minor side alongside fellow club men Ciaran Lenihan and Mark Battersby, had the honour of lifting the Diviison 2 trophy after Walterstown were beaten in the final by 2-10 to 0-6 on a wet day at Pairc Tailteann. The Blacks were two points to the good before Karl Burke opened Skryne's scoring with a goal as they went on to lead at the break by 1-4 to 0-4. Declan Morley's goal shortly after the break put the eventual winners 2-6 to 0-4 ahead and some controlled football ensured that the silverware would be heading down the N3 to Skryne, who impressively managed to land all of their scores from play on the day. The side that claimed the MFL Division 2 title was: C Ryan, C O'Rourke, P Keogan, C Bailey, D Brennan, A O'Sullivan, C Kennedy, D Ryan, C Lenihan 0-1, P Bannon, B Davis 0-1, K Burke 1-3, P Fox 0-1, D Morley 1-1, L Toalan 0-3. Subs - P McGoldrick for Bannon. Tweet

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