Blue day for Meath ladies in league final

The Artane Boys Band provided the half-time entertainment for this Ladies National Football League Div 2 final, but it was the Meath team who couldn't reach the right notes at Parnell Park on Saturday. Rank outsiders going into this game Meath didn't cause any major upset as a well-tuned Dublin side marched to a nine-point victory that few could argue they fully merited. There was some consolation for the Royal County girls. There was the fact that they didn't suffer the same fate as the league game between the sides earlier in the year when Dublin won more convincingly and outclassed their opponents. This time around the Royal County gave a much more spirited display and with six minutes left on the clock they trailed by only six points with the whiff of a dramatic comeback left lingering in the warm air. Instead Dublin did what they had been doing all afternoon and found an extra gear when they needed it most to finish in something of a canter and add the league crown to the All-Ireland title they won last year. The sides are due to meet again in the Leinster championship semi-final on Sunday 3rd July and Meath will certainly have their work cut out to try and dig out a victory. There were aspects of this game that Meath will take encouragement from including the fact that five of their players got on the scoreboard with Geraldine Doherty (pictured) leading the charge. The St Ultan's player notched 1-4, her cultured left foot proving to be a potent weapon in Meath's armoury. Doherty certainly had plenty of problems trying to deal with her pacy, tenacious marker Gemma Fay, but once the St Ultan's player got a little bit of space and time she made the most of it. She took aim and the ball invariably slotted between the posts. Vivienne McCormack also found the net for Meath her goal coming from a late penalty after Mary Sheridan was fouled. McCormack's well-taken spot-kick put a better reflection on the final scoreboard and was a reward for some enterprising bursts of play. Fiona Mahon, McCormack and Elaine Duffy also split the posts. The Dublin girls were adept at the passing game, retaining possession of the ball as if it was a rare diamond. They rarely gave it away and when one of their players moved forward she always had a passing option - or two. The players, who didn't have possession, ran at clever angles awaiting an off-load and it all made for a hectic afternoon for the Meath defence in warm conditions with Elaine Kelly and Sinead Aherne their chief tormentors. Meath didn't find the same kind of fluency as often as their opponents. Unlike the team in light blue, Meath gave the ball away too often. Time and again they were pressurised into making hurried clearances that Dublin gratefully swept up. On a number of occasions the hard-pressed Meath players sought to get the ball out of defence only to give it away to a grateful opponent lurking in the vicinity. The outcome usually meant the scorekeeper adding on another point for Dublin. The sharp, eagle-eyed Dublin attack had plenty of raw material to work from and goals in the 18th and 24th minutes from Olivia Leonard and Amy Ring helped them go in at the interval with a commanding 2-7 to 0-5 lead. There were times when it also clicked nicely for Meath, when their passes found their intended target and they stretched the Dublin defence with some clever movement and incisive approach play. Doherty's goal early in the second-half came from a sweet move that also involved Jenny Rispin and Mary Sheridan. And it was a pitch-long pass that led to Meath's second goal in the 54th minute. Orla Sheridan, Grainne Nulty, Mary Sheridan, Doherty, Mahon and Katie O'Brien were involved. Mary Sheridan ended up winning possession, but she was fouled in the square. McCormack stepped up to take the penalty and while she finished well, it just wasn't enough. Dublin's accuracy was remarkable. They clocked up only three wides while Meath weren't too wasteful either as they registered only four. That wasn't an issue for Paula Cunningham's side. It was more the problems that came with trying to contain an extremely fit, confident, swashbuckling Dublin outfit who know how to put opponents to the sword. Kellie Allen was switched from the backs to the attack late in the game and she added some sparkle, but by that stage Dublin were well on their way to victory. Dublin - C O'Connor; S Goldrick, J O'Sullivan, A McKenna; G Fay, S Furlong, S McGrath; D Masterson, N McEvoy; L Davey, E Kelly (0-4), N Healy (0-1); S Aherne (0-9 six frees), O Leonard (1-0), A Ring (1-0). Subs - M Nevin for Leonard 36 mins; L Peat (0-1) for McEvoy 39m, A Connolly for Healy 54m, G O'Malley for McKenna 57m. Meath - Irene Munnelly; Kellie Allen, Eileen Rahill, Aedin Murray; Orla Sheridan, Shauna Bennett, Bridgetta Lynch; Katie O'Brien (0-1), Fiona Mahon (0-1 free); Grainne Nulty, Geraldine Doherty (1-4), Elaine Duffy (0-1 free); Jenny Rispin, Mary Sheridan, Vivienne McCormack (1-2). Subs - Caitriona O'Shaughnessy for Duffy half-time, Adelle Carolan for Rispin 49m; Philomena Sheridan for Rahill 58m. Referee - Michael John O'Keeffe (Cork).