McEntee faces dilemma for Kingdom trip
AFTER losing their three opening games of the Division 1 league campaign, a trip to Fitzgerald Stadium to take on the might of Kerry wouldn’t be high on Andy McEntee’s wish list.
However that is where the Royals must go in search of their first brace of points this Sunday, with the throw-in scheduled for 1pm. This is one clash that Meath wouldn’t have earmarked to get anything from and they face a Kerry side somewhat bruised from their 0-14 to 0-13 defeat to Tyrone in their last outing.
That game was of course marred by the controversial dismissal of Kerry captain David Clifford, but as the two-time All-Star was sent off for a second yellow card offence he will be available to lead his team against Meath.
With the Royals tailed off at the bottom of the table, Kerry are one of four teams above them on three points and will hardly be in the mood for dropping more points as the scramble for a final spot picks up pace at this stage of the competition.
The Kingdom drew their opening-round tie with Dublin, edged out Galway by the minimum in round two - 1-15 to 2-11 - and then lost to Tyrone by the minimum. Such are the small margins in top-flight football.
The counties have of course clashed in recent times, the round three All-Ireland qualifier in Navan, where Kerry ran out comfortable winners - 2-18 to 1-13. Meath were in contention entering the final quarter, but their challenge fizzled out in the closing stages and Kerry hammered home their superiority.
What has changed since then, one might ask? Well, Kerry will be their same old selves, while arguably Meath have regressed since last autumn.
Three defeats on the bounce will hardly have done much for confidence, and with relegation staring them in the face it could be difficult for McEntee and his management team lifting morale for this particular trip.
Injuries to key players have of course hampered progress this year and it will hardly be much better going into Sunday’s clash.
Difficult choices - Andy McEntee.
Most of the key men that are sidelined are long-term injuries, so the likes of Mickey Newman (hip) and Padraic Harnan (shoulder) appear to be out for the foreseeable future.
Manager McEntee was hopeful after the defeat to Mayo that his injury list would be shorter by the time the Kerry match came around. That could mean that his son Shane and possibly Donal Lenihan could be back in contention, though it is difficult envisaging either playing much part in Killarney.
Meath U-20s’ Leinster semi-final clash with Dublin, scheduled for Saturday, is another headache that McEntee will have to contend with and decide if he should bring Shane Walsh, Matthew Costello and Jack O’Connor with the senior squad or leave them with Ger Robinson’s U-20s.
Despite all the injuries there should still be ample cover in the senior squad so as not to disrupt the Under-20s’ prospects.
Meath did play a challenge against Armagh in Dunganny on Friday night, but an experimental outfit lost heavily to the visitors. Barry Dardis lined out between the posts, while Seamus Lavin saw some game time before retiring following a knock.
The defeat to Mayo was the first time that Meath produced anything close to a performance following the disappointing displays against both Tyrone and Donegal.
Even in defeat a step up on the Mayo display is something for Meath to aim for on Sunday ahead of their last home match against Galway, while improving their scoring ratio is another area in need of improvement.