MEATH…5-16
OFFALY…0-09
Meath took their goal tally in this year’s Electric Ireland Leinster MFC to 18 when bagging another handful at Glenisk O’Connor Park, Tullamore, this (Tuesday) evening. Now read on…
Don’t let the final score fool you, however. Trevor Giles’s side led by 0-08 to 0-02 at the break but when the home side outscored their visitors by six to three in the first ten minutes of the second half, it left just a green flag between the sides.
To be honest, though, were it not for some brilliant goalkeeping from Cormac Fitzsimons and some timely interventions from the outstanding Alex Keane, Meath’s predicament may have been more precarious still.
To their immense credit, mind you, it was as if having their cages even slightly rattled brought the lads to a level of maturity beyond their footballing years as they went on to outscore their opponents by 5-05 to 0-01 for the remainder of the contest.
Liam O’Donoghue, Tomas Proudfoot, Conn Brennan, Cormac Walsh and highly influential substitutes Dara Loughran and Harris Moffatt putting tastey ones in the Faithful County net.
Even that, however, only tells a fraction of the story. On the night, because it wouldn’t tell of O’Donoghue ending up in a head on collision with the goalpost during the execution of our first ‘major’.
Or indeed the transformation this team has undergone since being able to ply their trade on a dry sod and with playing the ball quick and directly. Compared, that is, to the putrid climatic conditions the lads encountered when tackling both Louth and Kildare. Ironically, it will be the Wee County or Dublin who now await at the penultimate provincial signpost. But such has been the progress these lads have made in recent weeks, they have no reason to fear anybody.
Scorers – C. Walsh (0-6), T. Proudfoot, C. Brennan and D. Loughran (1-1 each), L. O’Donoghue and H. Moffat (1-0 each), C. McKenna and H. McGuirk (0-2 each), M. Stafford, T. Dillon and C. Comey (0-1 each).
MEATH – C. Fitzsimons; B. Brown, T. Clarke, N. Rogan; L. O’Donoghue, J. Killoran, N. Smyth; T. Proudfoot, C. McKenna; A. Keane, C. Brennan, H. McGuirk; C. Walsh, M. Stafford, T. Dillon.
SUBS – H. Keating for Killoran, D. Loughran for Dillon, H. Moffat for Walsh, C. Comey for Stafford, L. Kavanagh for O’Donoghue.
Referee – Enda Kelly (Westmeath)
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