Road to a Royal recovery starts against Westmeath

AFTER staging trials in recent weeks, Meath senior football manager Eamonn O"Brien and selectors Bobby O"Malley and Donal Curtis have started to put a panel together for the forthcoming O"Byrne Cup and National Football League. That is just the first of many tasks facing the new management team as they set about preparing the Royal County for the challenges ahead. O"Brien feels he can re-energise the Meath cause by taking the players performances up a step or two. 'It doesn"t take huge changes to bring about improvements that will get you up to a level. If you can get everybody to raise their game by small amounts it can have a huge impact, we have to try to get people up a few notches ' he told the Meath Chronicle. But what are the other challenges facing O"Brien as he continues his march towards the future? What changes will he have to make to bring Meath up to the new 'level' which he obviously feels is required if his team is to succeed? We take a look at some of the tasks O"Brien faces in the months ahead, some of the big issues he must deal with to improve the fortune"s of the county. Find replacements for Fay and Geraghty Finding replacements for two of Meath"s top players over the past 15 years is going to be a huge problem. Losing one of those players would be deemed unlucky, losing two of them at the same time has to be considered downright unfortunate. Both players have given outstanding service to the county and even in the twilight of their careers they were producing scintillating displays. Fay produced a series of rousing performances during 2007 and while his form dipped in 2008 he was still a formidable force in the Meath backline. One option is to bring Kevin Reilly to full-back, a position he has shown to be comfortable in, at both club and inter-county level. Geraghty, well, is Geraghty, a rare, if temperamental, talent. His natural athleticism and insatiable appetite for inter-county fare meant that he dragged out his career longer than most. Like Fay his contribution to Meath"s All-Ireland triumphs in 1996 and "99 were immense. He was always capable of conjuring up that little piece of magic that could win a game. The Seneschalstown and later Clann na nGael player never gave anything less than his all in the green and gold. It was one of the reasons why Meath supporters admired him so much. Compensating for the kind of performances Geraghty and Fay gave year in, year out for Meath is one of O"Brien"s biggest tasks. Even if Geraghty does make a return to the Meath jersey he is unlikely to be such an influential player as he once was. As the poet said 'time waits for no-man.' Take youthful talent to the next level It"s a challenge facing any manager - bringing young talent into the panel and getting the most from them. There is plenty of young talent in the Royal County as recent successful minor provincial success has suggested. In an interview with the Meath Chronicle a few weeks ago O"Brien stated that he will be looking to take individual performance levels up a few notches working on reinforcing the player"s mental and physical capabilities. This, he hopes, will help improve the team"s overall performances. Players such as Chris O"Connor, Alan Nestor, Brian Meade, Shane O"Rourke - they have shown that they have the skill and the temperament for the big stage. Their youthful talent needs to be brought to the next level to help Meath achieve that return to the round table. Repair damaged morale During the defeat by Limerick in the All-Ireland qualifiers last summer, Meath supporters were left numbed and shocked as they watched their side fall 20 points adrift. This was a game in which Meath sunk to a new low as they were jostled and taught a hard lesson by a Limerick side who were more workmanlike than spectacular. Meath staged a late revival and only ended up losing by nine points, but the poverty of the performance that day alarmed many supporters and it must have left psychological scars among the players. It"s a similar scenario regarding the Wexford game when Meath forfeited a 10-point interval advantage and led by the same margin in the second-half Nobody could remember afterwards when a Meath team had relinquished such a firm stranglehold on a game. What happens if Meath take a 10-point lead against Dublin next summer? Will those old doubts return? The players" mental strength will need to be reinforced during what is a demanding NFL programme against Cork, Fermanagh, Wexford, Laois, Monaghan, Armagh and Kildare. Restore some passion in playing for the county Various excuses were put forward for Meath"s defeat by Wexford last summer from the poor decisions of the referee to the tight confines of Dr Cullen Park. Others saw in the second-half capitulation, and in the abject performance against Limerick, a lack of real commitment among some of the players. There was a sense that some of the players who had graduated to the team in recent times may well have felt that they had made the grade, instead of pushing on to produce the kind of passionate, confident performances that were required to steamroll teams on big match days. Discipline, in terms of players sticking rigorously to a training regime will also be required. Shore up a leaky defence and find a solid midfield At various stages over the past few years Meath have shown an alarming tendency to leak scores that have scuppered their progress. Against Limerick last July the defence was repeatedly ransacked by a rampaging Limerick forward combination, particularly Ian Ryan who ended up with 3-7. Every time Limerick attacked they exposed gaps, at times with alarming ease. Against Cork in the All-Ireland semi-final of 2007 the Meath defensive formation really struggled when the Munster men switched on the power and went for scores. Finding an effective midfield combination is also a challenge. Nigel Crawford has produced some sterling performances for Meath in the past however, now in the autumn of his career, he may no longer be an option as one of the starting midfielders. Mark Ward looks poised to push on to become a highly accomplished performer in that area yet has still to take that step while Brian Meade has show plenty of promise in that sector, although he may need to employed in the centre-forward position. FIXTURE SCHEDULE O"BYRNE CUP /SHIELD Sunday, 4th January - Meath v Westmeath. Sunday, 11th January - Kildare or Wexford v Meath or Westmeath NFL DIV 2 Sunday, 1st February - Cork v Meath. Saturday, 14th February - Meath v Fermanagh. Saturday, 7th March - Meath v Laois. Sunday, 15th March - Wexford v Meath. Saturday, 21st March - Meath v Monaghan. Sunday, 29th March - Armagh v Meath. Sunday, 12th April - Meath v Kildare.