Tier 2HC a stepping stone for Meath
Saturday's opening Joe McDonagh Cup Tier 2 Hurling Championship game against Antrim is one that Meath manager Nick Fitzgerald views as a stepping stone to further progress for the Royal County.
For starters, Meath had to fight to gain entry to the championship after they were relegated from the 2017 Leinster SHC round robin on score difference - a return to the Christy Ring Cup beckoned.
That irritated enough Meath GAA officials to prompt some action, especially as Saturday's opponents Antrim had been included in what was the new Tier 2 HC despite losing Christy Ring Cup finals in 2016 and 2017.
Eventually, there was some white smoke from GAA HQ and a six-team Tier 2 HC was sanctioned.
The hectic schedule of five games in six weeks will start this Saturday when Meath host great rivals Antrim at Pairc Tailteann, a game that the manager Nick Fitzgerald and his backroom team of Paul Reilly and Kilkenny duo Michael Kavanagh and Martin Comerford are eagerly anticipating.
“There is a lot of pressure on Meath to stay in the competition as, when it was formed, we weren't part of the group,” suggested Fitzgerald at last week's media night where he outlined a realistic approach to the series.
“Some of the Co Board officials fought to get us included and we have to justify that now.
“There are no margins for error, from the opening game it's effectively a brand of knock-out hurling and our focus is totally on this Saturday's game against Antrim.
“We have to make a winning start, but our primary objective also is to stay in the competition,” he added.
Fitzgerald took over the reins for this year from the successful term that Martin Ennis heralded.
Ennis guided Meath to the Christy Ring Cup in 2016 and the NHL Div 2B title in 2017 and also a place was secured in the pre-season Walsh Cup tournament instead of the lower grade Kehoe Cup.
Meath enjoyed a comfortable outing in the NHL Div 2A and were never in any danger of relegation after opening round wins against Kildare and London.
“We assessed where we are from our form in the NHL Div 2A this year, we would be very disappointed with the Kerry result (Kerry 3-19, Meath 1-9), whereas we were expected to win against Kildare and London and we achieved those goals,” stated the manager.
“The Kerry game was the real disappointing result. Against Westmeath and Carlow you could see that we lacked that little bit of experience of playing at the higher level.
“Losing the man early on against Carlow (red card) didn't exactly help, Keith Keoghan picked up a second yellow card before half-time, but we were only four points adrift at the end.
“We were comfortable enough in the league if you ignore the performance against Kerry, but we have a lot to learn also.
“Our target now for 2019 has to be qualification for a league final and we will get a taste of what we might expect next year in this Joe McDonagh Cup as it's a lot of the same teams, including Antrim who were relegated from Div 1B.
“You could look at Antrim's league campaign a number of ways, they were relegated, but look who they were playing.
“They only lost to Galway by three points (1-16 to 1-19) and regardless of what team Galway put out they are the All-Ireland champions.
“Certainly, Antrim will be disappointed with relegation, but they will be able to take a lot of positives also, Dublin, Limerick, Offaly, Laois, all those teams are playing a faster brand of hurling than any of the teams in the Joe McDonagh Cup, apart from Antrim.
“Think what you want of Offaly or Laois, but they are on a slightly different level than the teams in this Tier 2 Hurling Championship,” he remarked.
And what about the format for the overall hurling championships with the addition of a new Tier 2 HC?
“I think the format now for the hurling championships is correct because whoever wins the Joe McDonagh Cup this year has 12 months to prepare for either the Munster SHC or Leinster SHC the following year.
“By getting to a Joe McDonagh Cup final, you are going to get a crack at a preliminary quarter-final this year, but there is also the 2019 championship to prepare for.
“The format now with this new Tier 2 HC means there will be five really good, really competitive games, but if a team is not good enough they will not survive.
“The rewards or incentives are attainable, if a team is good enough to win the championship.
“For the bottom tier teams, they can now see that there is a path to the top from the Lory Meagher through the Nicky Rackard, Christy Ring, Joe McDonagh and eventually the Liam MacCarthy.
“There is something to aim for and also something to win along the way,” he added.
Meath will once again be without the talented Trim hurler James Toher who is sidelined with a back injury.
“James (Toher) is a huge loss, he wanted to be the ultimate dual player, but he had to make a decision and he opted for the hurling,” said Fitzgerald.
“We believe his injury occurred in the Walsh Cup against Dublin.
“Being the type of player that he is, he doesn't have to be 100 per cent to play or to train, but the issue came to a head in the Carlow game.
“James has had a number of scans and a number of follow ups with consultants and it's going to be a lot longer that was originally thought before he returns to action.
“Antrim is our sole focus at the moment, a home game and we want a win to start with.
“We then go to play Westmeath and Carlow and if we have learned along the way we might have found enough improvement, Carlow are also down a player or two.
“As for the Kerry game, we won't have to say much to the players after the result in the league, but we beat them last year in Navan and we have to aim for that again.
“We have Laois at home in the last game, they will probably be expecting to win the Joe McDonagh Cup, they beat us last year, but it will all depend on what the result might mean this time around.
“The sequence of games is not ideal, it would be preferable if we had a week between each game, but it's the same for everyone and we have to get on with it,” he accepted.
Finally, what about the Kilkenny influence on Meath hurling with the addition of Michael Kavanagh and Martin Comerford to the backroom team?
“For the last few weeks we are starting to see the benefit of the experience Martin and Michael bring to the table,” suggested the manager.
“We looked back at from when we started last year and assessed what we have done, all aspects of the game.
“The lads have brought a level of intensity that we will need, a mindset about how to win that we will need, it
will all count, but it's up to the players once the game starts.
“Players like Chris Lynch and Niall Weir have made an impact, Paddy Conneely has come back into the picture, Jack Regan is there now and we didn't have him in a Meath jersey at times in the past.
“I've also gone through a steep learning curve and I have to also highlight Paul Reilly and Ciaran McDonagh, we have a good team on the sideline and we are getting a good team together on the field.
“This is a huge test for us all, there will be some extra interest in the new competition and I hope also that the local supporters will get behind us, starting on Saturday,” he concluded.
FIXTURE SCHEDULE
SATURDAY 5th MAY (3PM)
Navan - Meath v Antrim.
O'Moore Park - Laois v Westmeath.
SUNDAY 6th MAY
Carlow - Carlow v Kerry.
SATURDAY 12th MAY (3PM)
Belfast - Antrim v Carlow, Joe McDonagh Cup.
SUNDAY 13th MAY (3PM)
Mullingar - Westmeath v Meath, 1pm.
Tralee - Kerry v Laois.
SATURDAY 19th MAY (3PM)
Carlow - Carlow v Meath.
Cushendall - Antrim v Laois.
SUNDAY 20th MAY (3PM)
Tralee - Kerry v Westmeath.
SATURDAY 2nd JUNE (3PM)
Navan - Meath v Kerry.
Portlaoise - Laois v Carlow.
Mullingar - Westmeath v Antrim.
SATURDAY 9th JUNE (3PM)
Navan - Meath v Laois.
Carlow - Carlow v Westmeath.
Dunloy - Antrim v Kerry.