NHL PREVIEW Can Meath make it three from three with victory over Westmeath?

NHL PREVIEW

Jimmy Geoghegan

Two wins from two games played represents a formidable start for Meath in the NHL Div 2A, but behind the bare statistics there lies another reality. 

Those two victories were chalked up against Kildare (1-16 to 0-16), a team clearly struggling to find some traction in the league this year, and a London outfit (1-24 to 1-14) who are also obviously finding the demands of this division daunting. 
However, on Saturday Meath take on the first of the three big guns in the division. They welcome Westmeath to Trim (2pm throw-in) with encounters against Kerry and Carlow to quickly follow. 
If the home side do manage to defeat Westmeath, manager Nick Fitzgerald will surely be well pleased. A victory, no matter how narrow or scratchy, would indicate, in a very forceful way, that the strategies he and the other members of his management team have employed are working. It would be a strong endorsement of their ways. 
Like any ambitious manager Fitzgerald examines each game with the aim of seeking to find out what his team did wrong - and how matters can be rectified.
He was concerned about the concentration levels his side showed in London; he felt the players drifted out of the game. Tempo and intensity were other aspects of the performance that concerned him. He felt that such a display wouldn’t be good enough against the Lake County - and it’s difficult to disagree with him on that front.
On the positive side a number of Meath players are certainly tapping into a rich vein of form right now. Paddy Conneely is one player who has blossomed under the current management set-up. He was very good against Kildare and brilliant in London, firing over six points from play.
Defensively Meath have looked secure with Chris Lynch, Damien Healy and Shane Brennan among the backs to perform well in recent outings. Jack Regan has proved a huge player for Meath with 1-20 in the last two games. Granted most of those scores have come from frees - but he had a big influence from play also. 
Like Meath, Westmeath have won their opening two games, overcoming Carlow (0-19 to 0-15) and Kildare (1-20 to 2-11). They have talented players such as Killian Doyle, Derek McNicholas and Paul Greville who can help them shade close encounters - as Saturday’s clash is sure to be.
Last year Westmeath defeated Meath 1-18 to 0-19 in the Leinster SHC round-robin. The dangers are there for Meath, but this time around the Royal County could notch up a win against their near neighbours - and give the thumbs up to the managerment and their players that they are on the right track.