Hurlers shape up for semi-final test

LAST Sunday Meath hurlers paid a visit to Kilkenny, the county many consider the home of the small ball game. TJ Reilly brought his troops to Bennetsbridge to take on local side Clara in a challenge. By all accounts it was a worthwhile exercise for the Meath players as they came away with a victory and maintained a winning momentum ahead of next Saturday"s Nicky Rackard Cup semi-final with Armagh at Pairc Tailteann. Like most hurling clubs in Kilkenny, Clara have produced their contingent of players who have tasted glory in the black and amber. Among Clara"s most famous sons is Paddy Prendergast who captained Kilkenny in the 1987 All-Ireland final. The Nicky Rackard Cup is Meath"s immediate focus and the win over Clara was the latest sequence of triumphs that included 16-point demolition jobs on Sligo and Louth. Victories of that magnitude are rarely achieved by Meath hurling teams and suggests that on current form they are favourites to win the competition. It is doubtful if the margin will be of similar proportions when Armagh come calling on Saturday. There was only three points between the sides when they met in the NHL Div 3A at Crossmaglen in April with Meath winning by 2-17 to 3-11. The Ulster side showed that they are well capable of racking up a big score themselves when they out-gunned Roscommon last Saturday by a massive 6-26 to 2-9. On paper it looks like the proverbial thrashing by a team that is on-form and ready to rumble. However, sources who were at the game say that Roscommon offered little more than token resistance and were very poor indeed. The Orchard County have players such as Ger Enright and Declan Coulter who can cause problems for Meath. Coulter squandered a great chance to score a goal in that league outing at Crossmaglen and on that occasion at least Meath escaped censure. The win over Clara was not the only positive Reilly and selectors Brendan Fitzsimons and Anthony Kirby can take from their trip to the south east. The Meath team included Neil Hackett, Ger O"Neill and Nicky Horan, all of whom missed out on the Louth game because of various knocks. Hackett, who was sidelined with a back injury, is likely to start as his metronomic free-taking and general contribution is a huge asset to the team. Horan and O"Neill need no introduction and despite a long, hard year their contributions could prove invaluable against Armagh. Hackett did a great deal to defeat Armagh in the Crossmaglen game bagging 1-9, 1-6 from placed balls, and he knows that when an Ulster team visits Pairc Tailteann a demanding, physical contest is guaranteed. 'We"ll just have to be on our toes from the throw-in on Saturday, these lads who come down from the north are never easy to play against and we"ll just have to be ready for them,' he told the Meath Chronicle. 'They are very quick and very strong, one thing for certain is that it is going to be very physical, they"ll be very fit and we"ll just have to match them.' Meath narrowly missed out on promotion from the NHL Div 3A and they will not want to spurn a chance to take a step closer towards winning the Rackard Cup. Getting back to the Christy Ring standard was always the primary aim and a win against Armagh would be a big step in achieving that objective. They should have enough firepower to secure a place in the decider.