Orange march halted by Royals
By Dan O'Neill
d so the 1990s will end as it began, with Cork and Meath contesting the All-Ireland football final in September.
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The four terrible wides by Armagh at the start of the second half sealed their fate and not the sending off of Ger Reid later in the game, as some punters suggested. There is no team better than Meath at living off the mistakes of others. Armagh literally shot themselves out of the game
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It seems the Old Order has been re-established after a decade of surprises and upsets in the football championship.
Sunday's game was hardly a footballing spectacle, just like the Cork-Mayo game the previous week. This was due mainly to the tactics employed by Armagh, usually referred to as `getting bodies behind the ball'. Their plan was to was to crowd their defensive area so as to make it virtually impossible for the opposition to mount an attack apart from a series of short passes across the field - an offshoot of the high levels of fitness in the game now as forwards and midfielders are relied on to to chase back to help pack their defence. This tactic destroys the possibilty of a free-flowing game although managers never think of the neutrals when making their plans. Unfortunately, modern Gaelic football is increasingly being played in this manner as it is easy to stop a good footballing side by these tactics.
At some stages of the game, it looked as though Armagh had half the county crowding the middle for a kick out - the result being an orgy of breaking balls, blocked kicks and mad scrums for possession. Sometimes it was like a game of football in the school yard.
I did question McAlinden's and Canavan's tactics. Did nobody tell them that Meath are the best side in the country to play off this tactic? Trevor Giles thrives in such scrambles and Sean Boylan's side have the best tacklers and scavengers in the country.
Armagh had also hoped to unhinge the best defence in the county by playing two full forwards and taking Meath defender Darren Fay up the field (more people available to crowd the middle and their own half). This worked, as early in the game, the Orchard county put the first two goals past the Meath defence this summer. Once Darren Fay caught on, the tactic was hopeless. Armagh then only scored three points from play and one from a free after that. Their attack fell apart. Incredibly, they only managed to score one point in the whole of the second half. The four terrible wides by Armagh at the start of the second half sealed their fate and not the sending off of Ger Reid later in the game, as some punters suggested. There is no team better than Meath at living off the mistakes of others. Armagh literally shot themselves out of the game.
Meath, although far from impressive themselves, deserved their victory (achieved without Ollie Murphy and Tommy Dowd). Sunday's win for the Royal county was a trademark performance by Sean Boylan's side - nothing pretty, but physical and hard-earned.
Giles was the man who ran the show at centre half-forward and John McDermott was awesome in midfield, catching some great balls and linking up play. Once their defence was reorganised, they easily got the better of a frustrated Armagh forward line. Dangerman Oisín McConville, celebrated by the yellow biblical sign amongst their Hill 16 supporters which read `Oisín 2:7 ` (his personal tally in the Ulster final), was kept scoreless. However, in the circumstances the Crossmaglen forward could not be faulted as his father, suffering from long-term illness, was in a critical condition before the game.
This was a sad ending to a wonderful summer for the Armagh squad and their fans. Their disappointment at their failure to reach their first All-Ireland final in 22 years will eclipse that magnificant Ulster Final success. That's championship football for you. I think everybody outside of Meath (including myself) would have liked to have seen them go all the way, but at the end of the day they were not ready yet to make the breakthrough. They will be back though. They have many great young players - 19-year-old Paddy McKeever showed that on Sunday.
Cork will have taken some comfort in Meath's performance on Sunday, but manager Larry Tomkins will know exactly how hard Meath will be to beat. He played in those bruising clashes of 1987, 1988, and 1990 - footballing classics. This time, a footballing spectacle cannot be promised, but it is sure to be a very competitive and physical affair with plenty of passion. Hopefully it will be memorable at least.
The decade began with an historic Cork double in hurling and football and all the talk now is of a repeat as the Rebel county also contests this year's hurling decider, against Kilkenny (the old order back again). Who says history doesn't repeat itself?
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