A heart breaking gut punch but has it been coming?

MEATH…2-13

MAYO…0-22

Gut feelings are seldom wrong. Unfortunately. Perhaps the old adage about things being too good to be true holds true more often than we might care to admit.

Just as they had done in matches against Louth and Cork throughout the season, Meath were off the starting blocks in Bolt-like fashion. With Ciaran Caulfield and Sean Coffey goals sandwiched in between a phalanx  of points from Jordan Morris, James Conlon, Sean Brennan, Mat Costello and Caulfield.

Despite Mayo eventually rousing themselves to life, Robbie Brennan’s side were full value for their 2-08 to 0-07 half time lead. The only rueful thought may have been that they could/should have been even further  in front.

The inches that we so often speak of going against them. Once of their own doing, and once by a very thrashy call be an easily led referee.

First off, Ciaran Caulfield absolutely should have raised another green flag seconds after Coffey’s, but his rushed shot clipped the crossbar and went over. Then, however, the whistler from the Mountains Of Mourne gave an absoultely horrendous hometown decision when, after nothing other than the sheer strength of Cian McBride and others put Jack Livingston over his own line with the ball, floundering Paul Falloon managed to manufacture a free for the locals.

Still, a seven point lead looked decent. The only caveat to that being that, having played with the aid of the unseasonably blustry conditions, there was a sense of foreboding that the chasm might not be enough.

Mind you, when Conlon and Jack O’Connor tacked on two more to that in the early stages  of the second half there was no forewarning of the earthquake which lay momentarily ahead.

Now, I am going to be what you might biased here, so suck it up. Yes, the sending off changed the game. I know that, you know that and whatever dogs were on the street in Castlebar know that too.

But I’ll tell you who also knows it – the lad involved in the incident himself. His family. And those of us close to them. Having spoke to them and him in the aftermath of the hooter I can assure you devastation doesn’t come close.

Especially for a player who spent 14 months facing down a hamstring injury, the severity of which has finished other sports persons’ careers, including but not limited to Paul O’Connell.

Then, it’s also worth making the point that (a) he had been hit off the ball first and there wasn’t a thing done about it, (b) the referee didn’t even see it and (c) the attention-seeking individual who did make a fuss out of it isn’t even competent enough to be officiating at club level, never mind being on the inter county list.

Furthermore, how he escaped censure for his utter incompetence which allowed Michael Murphy away with an act of thuggery  in the Div. 1 FL Final is equally baffling.

HOWEVER, despite all of the above misgivings about the officiating, any fair appraisal of the overall contest must, in all honesty, conclude that Andy Moran’s charges had wrestled the momentum the momentum back into the credit column even before Ronan Jones’ enforced departure.

After all, the sides were level, 2-12 to 0-18, at the time, and, truth be told, were it not for a couple of top class stops from Sean Brennan – one from Kobe McDonald in particular – the fat may well have been in the fire well before the red mist turned up the heat.

Thus, while not excusing Ronan letting his frustrations get the better of him, I do not believe it was the only reason Meath lost. If broadening the inspection lens a bit to look at the All Ireland Series as a whole, a pattern has emerged which warrants and will receive a completely separate offering.

Partly because it was – as was opined in this space years ago – a case of momentum being the biggest game changer of the lot. As in, while the Royals undoubtedly would have obtained oxygen from the likes of Brennan’s saves and Jack O’Connor’s score on the run after Jordan Flynn had got the green and red back to parity with a double, Meath often resembled Tweety trying to evade Sylvester every time young McDonald got the ball.

Which in itself even reads a bit strange because both Flynn and Ryan O’Donoghue seemed to be involved in general play more even though the Crossmolina wonderkid took the scoring honours and nailed the clutch ones when they mattered most.

Meath Scorers – C. Caulfield (1-2), S. Coffey (1-1), J. Morris and J. Conlon (0-2 each), S. Brennan, B. Menton, C. McBride, J. Flynn, J. O’Connor and M. Costello (0-1 each).

MEATH – S. Brennan; S. Lavin, S. Rafferty, D. Keogan; K. Smyth, B. Menton, S. Coffey; C. McBride, J. Flynn; J. O’Connor, M. Costello, C. Caulfield; J. Morris, J. Conlon, E. Frayne.

SUBS – B. O’Halloran for Smyth, R. Jones for Flynn, C. O’Connor for McBride, C. Hickey for Costello, J. McEntee for Frayne.

Referee – Paul Faloon (Down)