Meath have the potential to win

It doesn"t matter what the grade or competition, the appetite is always whetted when Meath and Dublin meet and next Saturday at Parnell Park, 2.0. the great rivals will clash in the Leinster u-21 FC quarter-final. The last time the two counties met in championship fare it was a pulsating encounter which Pat Coyle"s Meath minor side won after extra-time at the same venue and Sunday"s match promises to be just as exciting. With Meath football currently at a low ebb because of a string of poor performances at senior level there is a major need for a lift and all eyes will be focused on Colm O"Rourke"s charges. The current crop of u-21s are back-boned by the successful Meath minor team from three years ago that reached the All-Ireland MFC semi-finals and they will hold high hopes of emulating that run, but face a tough test against Dublin. Dublin booked their place in the last eight with a hugely impressive win over hosts Louth at Drogheda last Sunday. Louth had high aspirations of causing a shock, but the physically imposing Dublin players were too strong and coasted to an easier win than the 3-12 to 2-8 scoreline suggests. Louth did upset Dublin"s rhythm in the opening half and restricted Jim Gavin"s side to a narrow 1-5 to 1-4 lead, but a second goal from Dean Rock, son of legendary Dublin forward Barney, put the contest beyond doubt. Dublin were hugely impressive. Their immense size will cause Meath problems, but there are a few areas that O"Rourke and his selectors Trevor Giles and Colm Menton should be able to expose. When Louth did manage to get inside the Dublin defence they found their full-back line to be shaky and if Brian Sheridan, Graham Reilly, Shane O"Rourke and Paul Larkin can capitalise on that next Sunday there will be plenty of chances. As is expected with Dublin, they will have a substantial height advantage at midfield with Cian O"Sullivan and Colm Murphy sure to tower over whatever midfield pairing Meath will muster. However, just because they"re big doesn"t make them unbeatable. During last Saturday"s defeat by Roscommon in a challenge game, Meath had an excellent display from Conor Gillespie and he may have done enough to earn a starting berth along side senior panellist Eoin Reilly. Meath are sure to be stretched in defence by Dublin"s evolving attacking unit. The players rotate positions and make it difficult to pin them down. Rock finished with 2-3 during the win over Louth, but he is by no means their only attacking threat. David Quinn can be hit and miss, but can boom points over from any angle and distance, Paddy O"Connor is accurate from frees and in Dean Kelly they have a lively corner-forward who will cause problems if afforded time and space. Dublin will probably opt to start Luke Sweetman at centre-forward instead of Ted Furman. He made an immediate impact when appearing as a half-time substitute against Louth, but he is more of an athlete than a footballer and if he can be contained then his link play will be nullified. Dublin"s impressive win will give them a great confidence boost, but they will have to be wary about getting carried away. Meath have assembled an excellent panel and if they can contain the Dublin danger men then the recent run of miserable u-21 results at this level might come to an end.