'It's about improvement with each game and there was another bit today'

NFL DIV 2 REACTION Meath make it a hat-trick in impressive showing

For the first time since 2019 Meath managed to string three league wins together as they inflicted a first defeat of the year on high-flying Roscommon at Pairc Tailteann on Sunday.

Back in the promotion winning year of 2019 Meath recovered from their second round loss to Donegal to go on and defeat Armagh, Cork, Kildare, Clare and Fermanagh in successive outings, but since then they've endured barren years.

There were six wins-in-a-row for Meath in 2023 when they won every game on route to winning the Tailteann Cup, but none of the victories in that run were against a side of the calibre of Roscommon.

The Connacht side came to Navan on Sunday unbeaten in their last 15 games in NFL Div 2. Since they lost to Fermanagh in 2020 Roscommon still went on and won promotion that year. They were relegated back down in 2021, but went through their 2022 Div 2 campaign unbeaten with five wins and two draws.

Their impressive start to this years campaign saw them claim victories over Down, Louth and Monaghan. Meath were expected to put up stiff resistance before eventually succumbing to the Westerners obvious abilities.

However, Meath produced one of their finest displays in many years as they turned a 0-8 to 0-14 deficit early in the second-half into a 2-16 to 0-15 lead in the space of 19 devastating minutes.

From the 42nd minute until the end Meath outscored Roscommon by 2-10 to 0-3, albeit with the aid of a strong wind at their backs - a serious statement of intent from Robbie Brennan's charges.

After Sunday's impressive win and even better performance Brennan remained level-headed and refused to get carried away as he stuck to the mantra of one day at a time.

While the forwards once again shone on the attacking front, it was the rock solid defence that this victory was built on with Donal Keogan, Seamus Lavin, Sean Coffey, Sean Rafferty, Adam O'Neill and Ciaran Caulfield all producing outstanding displays.

Limiting wind-assisted Roscommon to just a four-point interval lead was key to Meath's win and Brennan was pleased with that aspect, especially as his captain Eoghan Frayne had chosen to play against the wind after winning the crucial coin toss.

"I keep saying it's about improvement with each game and there was another bit today. There is still loads to work on, but you'd have to be happy with what the lads produced today," said the Meath manager.

"We looked at that (Roscommon's high scoring returns) in the analysis and felt that if we were going to win, we'd have to win some of those key battles because of the quality and the strength in depth that Roscommon have up front.

"We probably didn't win them all today but we certainly did enough to get over the line in the end. Fair play to the lads because it's not easy against some of those talented forwards.

"(Shutting down Diarmuid Murtagh) was huge. With the new rules there's a lot of space and forwards are enjoying that obviously, no more than our own.

"With the likes of Diarmuid and Enda Smith, we weren't planning for Enda to play but we saw him going in so we had to change things a little bit. Overall I'm delighted, the lads put in a phenomenal performance at the back.

"We did say at half-time that we couldn't put a number on how strong that breeze was because at times it was dying and if you were lucky enough to be on the attack at the time it died then you'd definitely get a shot away.

"I think we played it well enough in that first-half. Four points down, we were probably happy enough with that coming in. We'd left a couple behind us as well.

"We were lucky (to win the coin toss), it's what we were hoping for and we told Eoghan to go against the wind.

"That decision was just really on the basis that Roscommon have finished so strongly in the last couple of games when they've had the breeze.

"We knew they'd be bringing on the likes of Conor Cox and brilliant two-point shooters so we felt that if they were bringing those guys on against the wind, that they mightn't have the ability to kick those two-pointers.

"It's great when it falls that way. The toss could have gone the other way, and we had a plan for that if it happened, but certainly it was a bonus to us how it worked out."

Having suffered a third quarter fade out in the opening game of the campaign against Cork, Meath have certainly addressed that issue and again on Sunday they were simply devastating in that spell midway through the second-half when they blew Roscommon away.

"Against Cork, that third quarter, as we were hammered on in the media after we lost that, that third quarter wasn't what we wanted.

"You're talking about improvement there, and we're looking for it all the time, so it's something we do look at. Obviously the four quarters are important, but we did feel there was space in behind Roscommon because they were pressing so high and that's the way it turned out.

"There were a couple of crucial moments in the game. Obviously the two goals, but Dukies' couple of brilliant two pointers, Billy Hogan's save at a really crucial time as well, I can't wait to look at it back to see how he kept it out, I think that could have been a momentum changer for Roscommon. That was huge for us. Overall it was enough to get the job done."

Despite his best efforts to put a lid on the giddiness of the Meath supporters it was hard for Brennan to side-step the promotion talk, but he did urge the Royal supporters to keep coming out to get behind the team.

"I keep saying, the division is so tight that I don't think you can look beyond any week," said the manager.

"Next weekend is going to be an extremely tough one for us, heading down to Mullingar. That's where all the focus will be. And whether we're up or down, we know that we'll have to beat Westmeath and that's where all our attention will be.

"I've been in that stand during the good days and the bad days. I even started to hear a bit of a Meath chant. I was hoping more of the younger lads would join in. It kind of died off a bit.

"That's what you're hoping for. You can literally feel it coming down when you're on the line, and the players can feel it too. It's a huge part of the day."

Another huge factor in Meath's impressive performance was the impact of the younger players and the outstanding levels of fitness to be able to keep going at the end of almost 80 energy-sapping minutes.

"We're very lucky that balance is a key preference in the work being done underage by Paul (Garrigan) and the academies. You can see from Raff (Sean Rafferty) and Dukie (Conor Duke) that they're ready if they get their chance and there's plenty of others there ready to go as well, and a couple of older lads chomping at the bit as well.

"All things considered, and there's the few injuries there as well, we're happy where the squad is at.

"It's very difficult, I think I've said it before, training is chaotic, there's so much going on. We have a phenomenal coaching ticket including the S&C guys, David Drake and Phil Campbell, the work they do is as good as I've ever seen if not the best.

"Touch wood so far they've got the lads to a good level in a relatively short space of time, but, we're not there yet, there's still a huge amount of work to do.

"It is tough, some of the conditioning blocks we have them doing, if they weren't winning. We know, because of the GPS and the data, where we need to get to and where we're at. There's no hiding place from it and so far so good, the lads have rolled up their sleeves and are getting stuck into the work.

"The midfield is huge. They're two serious, serious midfielders (Bryan Menton and Jack Flynn). They're good in the air. They're both really good footballers and they've obviously added a huge bit to us coming back in. Above all else they're team players as well and they'll do the work for you on the back foot which is a huge part of it as well."

Brennan admitted afterwards that it appears Ronan Jones picked up a hamstring injury and could be out for a couple of weeks.

He also revealed that Mathew Costello and Eoin Harkin could be back in contention for for next Sunday's trip to Mullingar.

"It looks like a hamstring injury (for Jones), which is frustrating now for Ronan. I'd say he'll be out for a couple of weeks for sure.

"Some guys were training yesterday in Dunganny and Matty (Costello) was tipping away. He'll have to have another scan this week but he could be in contention for next week."