End of the road for footballers in forgettable tie at P‡irc Tailteann

Date Published: {J}

MEATH 0-11

GALWAY 0-10

FRANK FARRAGHER

THERE were times at Navan on Saturday evening when the GUBU term from the ‘CJ era’ of Irish politics sprang to mind with the exchanges skipping from the bizarre to the unbelievable as Meath eventually limped through this Round Two qualifying tie.

In the end, there was absolutely gripping excitement as the fate of this tie hung in the balance until literally the last kick of the game, but in the preceding 70 minutes it was hard to credit that two counties, with such a rich footballing pedigree, could produce an encounter of, at times, appalling mediocrity.

Meath people love their football and the 17,000 people that packed into Páirc Tailteann roared on the home side with an admirable intensity and passion, but deep down, as the Royal fans made their way home on Saturday evening, they must have realised that ambitions of grand glory are a long way off.

Meath could have this encounter done and dusted by half-time when they led by 0-8 to 0-4. Had their forwards displayed even a modest level of accuracy, then Seamus McEnaney’s side would have been out of sight by the time Cork referee Michael Collins sounded his interval whistle.

Nine times during the first half, Meath blasted wides, that often had more than a whiff of sheer awkwardness about them, and as the second half progressed, their malaise in front of goal went from worrying to sheer awful. Galway, from very humble scraps of possession early on, began to realise that they could get something out of this match.

Galway are in tough place in the football world of 2011 and there is very little faith in the management guidance, motivation or communication skills of Tomás Ó Flatharta, but in fairness to the players, they did show commendable spirit and grit, qualities that came within a hair’s-breadth of pulling off one of the surprise results of the weekend.

If Meath had managed to lose this match, then the home supporters would surely have required a week of serious counselling and Seamus McEnaney would be on the Live Register, but the home side survived and were raucously cheered off the pitch. That emotional line between a one point win and a one point defeat is very, very thin.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Sentinel.