Meath have potential to win again

Meath minor footballers continue their quest for silverware when they take on Tyrone in the All-Ireland MFC semi-final at Croke Park on Sunday, 12.15.This game will act as the curtainraiser for a triple header at headquarters with the All-Ireland SFC semi-final replay between Cork and kerry also sandwiched on to the programme. Following a hectic campaign in both the Ulster MFL which began last March against Cavan at Kingscourt and the Leinster MFC, the players will surely be looking forward to another big day out at headquarters. Meath have already sampled the special Croke Park atmosphere when they delivered a sensational late provincial final surge which eliminated Offaly. That win provided some solace for supporters and officials on the same weekend that the senior footballers capitulated against Limerick in the first round of the All-Ireland SFC qualifiers. Tyrone will go into Sunday"s game holding all the aces, although manager Ray Monroe is expecting a tough examination from the boys from the Royal County. 'We know that Meath will provide an extremely tough test for us, we were relieved when we beat them in the league final replay last May, but there was nothing much between us and it could go either way next Sunday,' he stated when contacted by the Meath Chronicle last week. For Meath manager Pat Coyle, Sunday"s game will provide an opportunity to rectify that Breffni Park replay defeat, but to achieve that, the Meath players will have to find some improvement on the displays they produced in both the game against Offaly and the All-Ireland quarter-final victory over Tipperary earlier this month at Portlaoise. There were mitigating circumstances surrounding that last encounter with Tyrone. There was an exhausting Leinster quarter-final victory against Dublin a week earlier at Parnell Park. The first-half loss of the highly influential Michael Newman and the absence of centre-back Tommy Johnson who had been sidelined with a hand injury and returned to the fray with 15 minutes remaining against Tyrone. Quantifying the impact which the Dublin game had on the Meath players would be impossible, but with 14 players during normal time and then a tense period of extra-time, it is reasonable to assert that it wasn"t an ideal way to prepare for another big game. However, after the defeat by Tyrone, Coyle was upbeat about the performance. 'It was still a good display by the players, the effort they put in against Dublin probably took a toll, we were only two points off the pace at the end and at one stage we were three points to the good,' he stated. So where can Meath win this game on Sunday if they hope to progress to the decider? Firstly, they will have to be tuned-in from the start, precise passing will also help and even more importantly, they will have to mark tightly and consistently. I have no doubt that this group of players have the ability to reverse that two-point defeat, but possessing the capabilty does not automatically mean you will deliver the goods. Tyrone will start as raging red-hot favourites and will have the backing of substantial support. Leaving that to one side, with Johnson and Newman in the starting 15, and with a tough campaign under their belts, the team will rise to the occasion. The experience of a tough Leinster campaign was evident against Tipperary where Meath did enough to prevail. It has become the hallmark of the team, they just do enough, nothing flash, nothing too demanding. They have displayed some of the battling traits of former teams from the county who were prepared to play until the final whistle, regardless of how the game was going. The substitutes bench is strong, the management team work well together, discipline is a big deal. All the ingredients for success are there, but it will still be a major task to win one more time. Tyrone will look to players like Kyle Coney, who scored 1-3 from play in the league final replay and claimed 1-2 in the All-Ireland quarter-final victory (1-15 to 1-8) over Roscommon. Matthew Donnelly and Paddy McNeice will also pose problems for the Meath rearguard. Add in the Paddy Gilsenan factor for Meath. The Oldcastle player might get the nod to start in the forward line, if not, he has the potential to be major impact-substitute. Gilsenan has speed, strength and a cool head, he could be introduced if the selectors need to change tactics. And the ability to change things around is a big positive for the Royal County. What you see at the start is not necessarily what you get at the final whistle. Meath can win this one and keep the football fires burning until September. Last time they met Ulster MFL final replay: Tyrone 1-10, Meath 0-11. Scorers: Tyrone - K Coney 1-4, one free; N McKenna, M Donnelly 0-2 each; D McNulty, P McNeice 0-1 each. Meath - P Gilsenan 0-3, one free; M Battersby 0-3, two frees; M Collins 0-2, one free; W Carry, D Carroll, M Newman 0-1 each. Teams: Tyrone - T Harney; F McQuaid, S Warniock, D Gorman; S McRory, G Teague, P Harte; M Donnelly, N McKenna; C Garvey, R Pickering, K Mossey; K Coney, D McNulty, C O"Neill. Subs - B Kelly for Warnock 29 mins; P McNeice for McQuaid 33m; S Murphy for Donnelly 57m. Meath - Padraig Curran (Dunboyne), Ciaran Lenehan (Skryne), Sean Curran (Donaghmore / Ashbourne), William Carry (Round Towers); Enda Nulty (Round Towers), Brian McGrane (Walterstown), Donncha Tobin (Blackhall Gaels); David Ryan (Skryne), Damien Carroll (Ballinabrackey); Mark Battersby (St Vincent"s / Curraha), Michael Newman (Round Towers), Darragh Smyth (Bective); Paddy Gilsenan (Oldcastle), Andrew Tormey (Donaghmore / Ashbourne), Harrison Silke (Na Fianna). Subs - Mark Collins (Duleek / Bellewstwon) for Newman 20 mins; Tommy Johnson (St Martin"s) for McGrane 45m; Sean Dalton (Summerhill) for Smyth 52m.