Meath out-gunned by sharp shooters

Mixed emotions were evident at Croke Park on Sunday after Meath lost out to arch rivals Dublin in the Leinster JFC decider where Offaly referee Con Costelloe produced two red cards. Na Fianna"s Jamie Queeney was understandably distraught as he returned to the dressing room following a week in which his father passed away, but he opted to line-out for the Royal County on what was an important occasion in football terms. 'I left it up to Jamie and he indicated that he wanted to play which was fine with the selectors,' commented team manager Kit Henry as he consoled the Na Fianna player after the final whistle. The straight red cards arrived in each half with Dublin"s Brian Sexton first to go a minute from half-time and the balance was restored 10 minutes into the second-half when Meath captain Colm O Mealoid departed, but there was a consensus amongst the players afterwards that both decisions were harsh. Meath also lost wing-back John Bruton after 10 minutes when the Kilbride player was stretchered-off with concussion following an accidental collision with Dublin"s Karl Connolly as both players battled for possession. That forced the deployment of Shane McAnarney in the half-back line with David Morgan moving out to left half-forward and substitute Niall Farrell going into the right corner forward position. Meath were slow out of the blocks in each half and that ultimately proved costly as Dublin managed a brace of quick points. The opening salvo came from Connolly after Meath lost possession inside 60 seconds and a minute later Adrian Darcy split the posts. After the resumption, Dublin"s most potent player, Warren Finnegan converted a brace of frees in as many minutes as Meath virtually spectated and with a four-point deficit at the end, it demonstrated how important it is to be tuned in from the start. And Meath were not tuned in at all. They played in patches, failed to make any use of the extra man during five minutes of first-half injury-time and for 10 minutes after the break when they were actually out-played by a more determined Dublin 14. TJ Garry got Meath off the mark in the sixth minute when he pointed after O Mealoid provided the final pass, but the Dunderry player could have found the net. Mairtin Doran got all the way forward from wing-back in the 16th minute and drew the sides level before Dublin were denied a goal by the woodwork after Meath "keeper Neil Burke made a futile appeal to the umpires for some assistance. He appeared to have been impeded off-the-ball. Further Dublin points from Finnegan (two) and Connolly were cancelled by Queeney, Ger McCullagh and Garry as the teams finished a low key first-half tied at 0-5 apiece, but with Meath enjoying the advantage of an extra man. Despite conceding those two early second-half points, Meath were just starting to find a rhythm when Garry got them going from a well-struck 40-metre free after O Mealoid was the victim of a late Darcy tackle which went unpunished although when Rory O"Connor was late in the opening half he collected a yellow card. That card cost O"Connor his place as he was replaced at midfield by John Barry O"Reilly who later earned a yellow card for his tackle on Dublin full-forwrad Owen O"Gara which gifted the 'home" team a penalty and gave them the initiative of a 1-9 to 1-7 lead with 10 minutes remaining. Garry poached a fine goal for Meath towards the end of the third-quarter and at that stage the Royal County looked more than capable of building on that, but when Dublin corner-back Colin Prenderville ran the length of the pitch for an inspirational point it turned the tide again. Morgan managed an impressive point from a tight angle under the shadow of the Cusack Stand, but when Finnegan blasted to the net from a penalty it finished the game as a contest and for all their endeavour in the closing stages, Meath just couldn"t claw back the deficit. SCORERS Dublin - W Finnegan 1-8, penalty goal, four frees, one '45"; K Connolly 0-2; A Darcy, O O"Gara, C Prenderville 0-1 each. Meath - TJ Garry 1-4, three frees; J Queeney, D Morgan, M Doran, N Farrell 0-1 each. THE TEAMS Dublin - C Clarke; C Prenderville, M Fitzsimons, D Daly; N Brogan, A Dennis, M White; C Daly, D Bastic; R Joyce, K Connolly, B Sexton; W Finnegan, O O"Gara, A Darcy. Subs - D Homan for Darcy 45 mins; J Cooper for Brogan 47m; N Tormey for Connolly 56m. Meath - Neil Burke (St Ultan"s); Brian O"Reilly (Nobber), Thomas Dillon (Syddan), Michael Burke (Longwood); Mairtin Doran (Kildalkey), Colm O Mealoid (Donaghmore / Ashbourne), John Bruton (kilbride); Glen Loughran (Cortown), Rory O"Connor (Donaghmore / Ashbourne); Ger McCullagh (Ratoath), Ian Dowd (Donaghmore / Ashbourne), Shane McAnarney (Clann na nGael); TJ Garry (Dunderry), Jamie Queeney (Na Fianna), David Morgan (Donaghmore / Ashbourne). Subs - Niall Farrell (Donaghmore / Ashbourne) for Bruton 10 mins; JB O"Reilly (St Michael"s) for O"Connor half-time; John O"Donoghue (Moynalvey) for Dillon 50m; Jamie Shaw (Clann na nGael) for Loughran 54m. REFEREE Con Costelloe (Offaly)