40 years ago
November 30, 2007
Mattie Kerrigan speaks about Meath's great adventure in 1967 as if it all happened yesterday - five victories that led to the realisation of a dream and the annexation of the biggest prize Gaelic football has to offer.
Kerrigan wasn't part of the Meath set-up in 1966 when expectations were sky high going into the All-Ireland final after they had beaten a highly rated Down side by 10 points at the penultimate hurdle. Galway were seeking their third successive Sam Maguire Cup, but it was the Royal County who were favourites to finish the job on the back of that stunning performance against the Mourne men and previous impressive outings against the Tribesmen.
However, the fourth Sunday of September brought nothing but misery for Meath as they scored only seven points and lost by six. It wasn't so much the defeat that hurt, but the stark reality among the Meath players that they hadn't performed on the day that mattered most.
"I was sitting in the stand in 1966 looking at the All-Ireland final," Kerrigan recalled. "Meath were great in the semi-final against Down and were raging hot favourites in the final. Of course, that suited Galway who had played in the previous three finals, winning the previous two. It was set up ideally for them.
"I remember how it was with Summerhill when we had won two or three Meath senior titles in-a-row. You needed something to happen that would get you going again. It was like that with Galway in 1966. Hunger is such a big part of things."
Pat 'Red' Collier made it very clear to the gathering at the homecoming for the team in Navan after that '66 disappointment that Meath intended to make amends the following year. They did and a Galway native who was later to play such a big role in Summerhill's emergence as a super power in Meath football was at the centre of the '67 action.
"I first came into the Meath team for a National League game against Louth at Drogheda in October, 1966," Kerrigan added. "Kevin McConnell was first to spot me in a club game. I was at full-forward against Louth and was marking Seamus Kirk (the current TD) who was a fine footballer. I was moved out to midfield in the second half and we drew.
"I was in and out of the team during the league and got my place back for the quarter-final against Cavan. Thankfully, I managed to hold onto it after that.
"At the beginning of 1967 all the talk was of the championship. I remember there was a determination in the camp, with lads saying we would win it by hook or by crook. Of course, preparations were very different in those days and weight training depended on what sort of hay bales you were feeding to the cattle!
"I remember it was wet for our first Leinster Championship match against Louth at Croke Park. I was playing on Frank Lynch. That match turned out well for us and we won comfortably. We had a lot of new lads. It was the sort of start we needed to get things moving."
Westmeath were next up for their neighbours at Tullamore which hadn't always been the happiest of hunting grounds for Meath.
"Westmeath had already beaten Dublin by the time we met them in Tullamore," Kerrigan said. "I was marking TJ Finneran. That was a good Westmeath team and also included players like Mick Carley, Paddy Cole and Dessie Dolan. We played very well to beat them. That victory set us up for the Leinster final against Offaly.
"I would have to say the Offaly game was as hard a match as I ever played in. I was on Paddy McCormack who, I have to acknowledge, was a very good footballer. We won by two points and I won my first Leinster Championship medal that day. It was the sort of thing I had dreamt of. However, in the dressingroom after the final there was no getting carried away. There was a certain determination to move on from there."
And move on Meath did, beating a very accomplished Mayo team by six points in the All-Ireland semi-final.
"Galway had been lucky to beat Mayo in previous Connacht matches, before Mayo got the better of them in '67," Kerrigan recalled. "They were a fine footballing team with a lot of very talented players.
"I had been moved to midfield in all the previous games and this happened early on against Mayo. I remember Peter Moore scoring one of the goals. That match was on television and there was a break in the transmission. We were behind when that happened, but we got two goals and by the time service was restored we were in front.
"John Gibbons, who was later to play with Summerhill, played with Mayo that day. Austin Lyons came on as a substitute for Meath. They are cousins. We played well in that game and scored 3-14 which was a very good tally."
It all meant that Meath were back in the All-Ireland final and had a chance to atone for the disappointment of 12 months earlier when massive expectation turned to shattering despondency as they failed to do themselves justice on the day the silverware was being handed out. There was a ferocious determination not to let that happen again, but during the first half it looked a distinct possibility.
"I started the All-Ireland final on Denis Coughlan and to be straight about it I didn't see a lot off the ball in the first half," Kerrigan said as he looked back on a Meath display that certainly didn't set the world alight in the opening period, but improved enormously in the second which Meath won by 1-8 to 0-5 after wind-assisted (a force 8 gale) Cork had led by 0-4 to 0-1 at the interval.
"I was moved to midfield, with Terry Kearns going to centre half-forward. Our only score of the first half was a point by Paddy Mulvany. 'The Red' was really great in that half when we were under a lot of pressure. He was a class act and a great reader of the play. Because he wasn't the tallest of players, he possessed tremendous balance.
"We were three points behind at half-time and there wasn't any shouting or anything like that in the dressingroom. Instead, it was calm and there was a determination that what had happened in the '66 final wasn't going to be allowed to happen again. We really dug deep in the second half and scored 1-8.
"We played great stuff in that second half and I believe there were two defining moments in the final. Eric Ryan had a goal chance in the first half for Cork, but Bertie Cunningham bravely got a leg to the ball. It was a fearless piece of play and very important for us.
"Meath were awarded a 14-yard free in the second half, but Tony Brennan didn't raise the ball. Cork full-back Jerry Lucey cleared it. I got the ball and went for a point. It fell short and Terry was waiting on the edge of the square. He got a hand to it and flicked the ball to the net. That score really set us up for victory and was the turning point of the final. Terry had been looking very tired, but he went on to have a super game after that."
Kerrigan acknowledged that the Meath team of that time were a "superb bunch of players" who could have won more before the '67 triumph, as well as after it. When considering that they unluckily lost to Galway by only two points in the 1964 All-Ireland semi-final and went under to them again in the '66 final it's hard to argue with that assessment.
He is also quick to pay tribute to all those who were involved with Meath when they claimed the county's third All-Ireland senior title in '67, including one of the most remarkable and exceptional men in the history of the GAA.
"Peter McDermott was ahead of his time," Kerrigan said. "His team talks before games were very, very good. He possessed a tremendous knowledge of the game."
Winning the 1967 All-Ireland was a great highlight for the Meath players and so too was the historic trip to Australia in '68.
"The tour to Australia was a wonderfully successful trip," Kerrigan recalled with great pride. "We trained very hard for it throughout the winter months. The Australians were semi-professional and they played it hard and tough. The Meath players carried themselves with great dignity. The whole trip was a huge undertaking and a huge success. It was great to be part of it.
"I suppose we were vulnerable when we met Longford in the '68 Leinster Championship and they beat us before going on to win it. They were a very good side."
Of course, Kerrigan and Meath were back in the All-Ireland final again in 1970, but this time there was the disappointment that goes with losing such massive games.
"We got to the 1970 final after beating Galway in the semi-final," he added. "We were beaten by an exceptional Kerry team. I was playing great football and was training every day. I lost a lot of weight and was like a whippet. I remember feeling very tired in the lead-up to the final. That was the first 80-minute final which made it even tougher."
Kerrigan never got to play in an All-Ireland final again, but there was the thrill of beating a powerful Dublin side in the 1975 National League final, a triumph that helped him gain an All-Star Award along with the brilliant Ken Rennicks that year. He was also voted Meath footballer of the year in '75.
Add in so much success achieved with Summerhill on the club front, including captaining them to SFC glory in 1976, he truly enjoyed a varied and rewarding playing career which was also marked by some great moments on the hurling field with Kilmessan.
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