Dramatic finale expected in St Conleth’s Park Newbridge

LEINSTER U-20 FC FINAL PREVIEW

Cue dramatic movie trailer music...This Wednesday...Two bitter rivals meet again...One has inspired hope and confidence for the future of their county....The other is hell-bent on revenge...Leinster glory on the line...The sequel of Meath v Louth at u-20s...In a Newbridge park near you, writes Tom Gannon.

This Wednesday's u-20 FC final has massive potential. For years the division has been dominated by Dublin. You have to go back to 2007-2008 for the last time that Dublin has not contested the Leinster u-20 final for two years in a row.

A new dawn in this age group coupled with Meath’s sensational Leinster SFC semi-final win at Portlaoise on Sunday suggests that the Dublin dominance in the province may well finally be over.

This Wednesday is not about Dublin though. It's about a Meath side who, despite having the weight on their shoulders of what their predecessors achieved, have shown incredible composure and hunger to climb the mountain once more and put themselves in with a chance of doing what no Meath side has done since 1991, a second Leinster u-20 title in a row. Who stands in their way of this fantastic accomplishment? The noisy neighbours Louth, who are keen on getting sweet revenge for last year's final loss at the same venue.

Cathal O Bric has been at the helm for the revival of u-20 success at inter-county level in Meath.

Speaking after his side's semi-final victory over Kildare, O Bric was extremely complimentary of his side's resilience and composure through the championship. He also complimented his S&C coaches on the work that they've done with the team.

"There is great resilience in the lads. We never really panic when we conceded a goal. The lads believe they have the quality to get themselves back into the game. Fair play to our S&C lads, the condition of the lads down the stretch has been fantastic. They finish very strong." said O Bric.

"There are some fantastic individual performers all over the pitch. Ben Corkery, Jamie Murphy and Rian Stafford all stood up against Kildare. Tadgh Martyn has been immense for us. Eamonn Armstrong plucks balls out of the sky for us when we need it. Michael McIvor's strength and composure on the ball is key. Every player puts their shoulder to the wheel when we need them to."

Defensively, Meath have been very strong and in particular their full-back line has stood out. O Bric has full faith in his side's back six regarding their ability to shut down opponents and transition forward.

"We are very fortunate with the work-rate of our defenders. We have a quality full-back line there with Sam Jordan, Rian Early and Ciaran O'Hare. The other side of it is, when those lads come out with the ball, there is already someone there in space for them."

O Bric is acutely aware of the talent and hunger that Louth will bring to Wednesday's final and is looking forward to an entertaining contest.

"Louth are coming with a huge quality and they have a point to prove from last year. Louth won't need any motivation to put in a huge performance against us to get revenge for last year. It should be a fantastic game."

Louth u-20 manager Fergal Reel was speaking after his side's victory over Dublin last week and he stressed the importance of Wednesday's final to not only his u-20 side but to Louth GAA as a whole.

"Louth in general needs to get to semi-finals and finals and eventually a team has to break through that glass ceiling. Our success has come through development squads and good coaching at school and club level." said Reel.

"No disrespect to the rest of the teams in Leinster we need to be consistently at the level of the Meaths, Kildares, and Dublins and it shouldn't be a big deal when we beat any of those teams.

“From Johnny Clerkin (Louth minor manager) to myself and Ger Brennan (Louth senior manager), everyone is trying to get that elusive Leinster title and then the gates should open."

Last year, the Wee County were unhappy with the preparation time that they were afforded ahead of the Leinster final and Reel pointed out that this year, both sides have the same amount of time to get ready for Wednesday's showdown.

"We have a day or two extra than we had last year to prepare for this year's final and both teams are going into Newbridge with the same amount of time to prepare."