Royal engagement a potential banana skin
IT must be a Meath thing, just when you think things are going your way that’s when they’ll strike.
We all remember the famous 2001 All Ireland senior football semi-final. The Kingdom went into game cock-a-hoop off the back of the famous draw and replay with the Dubs in Thurles and the Royals very quickly punctured that particular bubble.
2-14 to 0-5 in favour of the Royals and the Kingdom’s bid for their first back-to-back titles since the golden years would have to wait another and six years to be fulfilled. It represented a humbling defeat and the first major set-back of Páidí Ó Sé’s tenure as Kerry senior football manager.
That’s Meathness for you, if you want to call it that, and that’s what Meathness will do to you. It extends to their hurlers too. When Kerry rocked up to
Páirc Táilteann in April of 2017 most people, not unreasonably, expected them to be a cut above Meath.
Yes Kerry had suffered a relegation and Meath had gained promotion, but Kerry’s was from Division 1B and Meath’s from Division 2B. A spring spent in action against Galway and Limerick (who went on to gather the next two All Ireland titles) would seem to have been better preparation for Kerry than the Royals’ games against Roscommon and Mayo.
And, yet, despite all that Meath turned the Kingdom over in the first round of the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship Round Robin. Meath were quite comprehensive winners too – 3-20 to 2-17 – this was no smash and grab effort.
At a stroke Meath fatally undermined the Kingdom’s efforts to reach the Leinster championship proper and as they head to Trim this weekend it’s that day, above all others, which will be foremost in their minds. Meath could again derail the Kingdom’s best laid plans.
After victory over Offaly in the last round, Kerry’s fate is very much in their own hands. Win the next two games and they will be in a league final. There’s even a feeling amongst a lot of people that with the win over the Faithful that the hard work has been done. That’s a very dangerous way of thinking when Meath are your next opponent.
Nobody will more relish the chance to upend best laid plans than the Royals. Yes, it’s a game Kerry have the capacity to win, yes it’s a game they ‘should’ be winning, but that doesn’t mean that they necessarily will. Fintan O’Connor’s men will have to be fully tuned in for this game otherwise all the good work they’ve done to date in this year’s league could be undermined.
Meath, who won last season’s Christy Ring Cup, aren’t a bad side by any manner of means. What they are is actually quite young, which is somewhat surprising for a side who’ve just gained promotion in the championship.
Their manager of the previous couple of seasons Nick Fitzgerald has stepped aside and been replaced by Westmeath man Nick Weir and Weir seems to have brought in quite a bit of fresh talent to the side, building for the future – the Potterton brothers Paddy and Nicky have bolstered the side in the last twelve months, while Podge Hanrahan has stepped in as free-taker.
The Royals’ previous free-taker Jack Regan – a class act – is still very much on the scene and will take watching. Other forward players to watch out for include Damien Healy (who has played for the Irish Shinty team) and James Toher (another international).
One man who Meath shouldn’t have available to them for this weekend is full-forward Alan Douglas, who looks set to be suspended for the game having been sent off against Wicklow in the last round. A significant loss for Weir’s men and probably one they can ill-afford at the moment.
The mood in the Royal county seems to be that they’re not moving particularly impressively to date this season. They were said to be quite disappointing against Wicklow on their home patch and, while they only lost out by two points on the road to Offaly, that possibly wasn’t as impressive in reality as it seemed on paper.
Offaly – who had already beaten them comprehensively in the Kehoe Cup – were well clear at half-time before easing up in the second half in O’Connor Park in Tullamore. Still that they were able to go to Offaly and come that close suggests Kerry won’t get anything easy this Saturday afternoon.
It’s important to remember that Kerry aren’t at full strength as of yet. Jason Diggins does have a chance of featuring – probably as a substitute – but Bryan Murphy and Daniel Collins won’t make the trip East this weekend and Michael Slattery would seem to be doubtful (as a starter at least) having gone off injured against Offaly.
Still there’s a hell of a lot of quality in that Kerry squad. Defensively they’re very solid, even without Murphy and Diggins the last time out. Seán Weir and Mikey Boyle were stand-out performers, while the midfield pairing of the two Shanes, Conway and Nolan, worked very nicely.
Of course, it’s quite fluid in that sector of the pitch. Fionán Mackessey and Brandon Barrett will also contribute in the engine room. The combination of Colum Harty and Jordan Conway on the inside forward line is quite formidable too (both pilfered goals against the Faithful). The return to fitness of Michael O’Leary is another big plus ahead of this weekend, he’ll likely start in the absence of Slattery.
So Kerry do, obviously, have what it takes to win this match and given what’s at stake we can’t imagine they’ll take this game any way lightly. Their manager will have been hammering home the message all week that the Royals can hurt them, that what’s hard earned can be easily lost.
All the same we think this team has too much quality, is too conscientious and has too much hunger to get the job done to slip up this time. Forewarned is forearmed.
Meath, who won last season’s Christy Ring Cup, aren’t a bad side by any manner of means. What they are is acutally quite young