“Natural justice wasn’t done,” says Tony Davis. “There should be some mechanism to give Louth a replay.”
This one could run and run.
Anyway, that’s all from me. If you want to spend the next couple of hours with us, why not join Conor Hogan for the Munster hurling final between Cork and Waterford over here.
The Garda band were in Croker today. Maybe they should have been on duty. The policing situation was shoddy. Just one Garda, it seemed from the pictures, arrived on the scene to escort Martin Sludden off the field. Surely, error or not, there should have been a dozen of them around the official at the final whistle. Instead, he was left to his own devices to fend off a slew of would-be attackers.
No-one, not referee Martin Sludden, not Louth supporters, certainly not the GAA and their stewarding and security practices, comes out of this well.
Meath win the Leinster title, their first in nine years. But all the reaction to this game will be about the scenes right at the end. Pat Spillane condemns the actions of a small number of Louth supporters but agrees that they were robbed.
And maybe he’s just caught up in the moment, but Spillane has demanded that the Central Competitions Control Committee grant Louth a replay.
The most disgraceful finish to a game I’ve ever seen. Referee Martin Sludden is attacked by several Louth supporters as the Gardai are incredibly slow to offer protection. Incredible pictures. Absolutely incredible. And we’ll here much, much more about this.
What a finish!
Goal Meath, Joe Sheridan, who THREW the ball over the line. While sitting on the goal-line. It was a long ball into the square, Seamus Kenny catches it with the keeper Neil Gallagher gone AWOL. Kenny goes for a goal to win it but Paddy Keenan – hero of Louth heroes – blocks it on the line. It loops into the air, Sheridan catches it and, in trying to kick it into the net, throws it over the line. Meath win it, but it’s the most controversial finish imaginable.
Eamonn McAuley charges up the field but carelessly loses possession and fouls Graham Reilly. McAuley and JP Rooney both kick the ball away to prevent Meath from attacking, but they fial.
Okay, maybe it wasn’t a horror miss but in different circumstances you would have expected White to nail that one. Meath attack again but Louth win a phantom free. We’re into the last of the three minutes of added time.
Paddy Keenan has been a captain fantastic today. Absolutely immense. He helps to rob Graham Reilly inside the 45 and launches a Louth counter. They win a free, and Brian White has a chance from 40 metres, straight in front.
But it goes wide. Horror miss.
Red card for Louth!
Colm Judge, who was booked moments ago for a rugby tackle on Seamus Kenny, commits a carbon copy offence on Kevin Reilly and is promptly shown the red.
Senseless, says Martin Carney.
The poacher Rooney has his eye on another goal but Brendan Murphy is quickly off his line to hack clear. Two minutes left…
If Louth fail to get their hands on the cup today, it’ll be many years before they get a better chance. They’re hanging on, but they’re hanging on well.
… which he scores. A massive, massive point, just when it was needed. One between them again, and Meath have responded exceptionally well to that goal.
Cian Ward slots the free to cut the margin to two. Just over five minutes left, and Ward gets another chance, this one from 55 metres.
Paddy Keenan takes one for the team. He fouls the sprinting Graham Reilly but if ever there was a perfect booking, this was it. A cynical tackle, says Martin Carney. But a necessary one, I would say.
What a moment! Goal Louth!
A long free into the Meath square finds Brian Meade flapping. JP Rooney pounces on the loose ball and finds the top corner with a brilliant finish.
Or will they? From their next attack, Colm Judge finds Andy McDonnell in space and the wing forward, who’s worked his feet to the marrow today, fires a fine point. Sides level again.
I don’t care how close or exciting it may be, this is terrible stuff.
Just as I say that, some fine play by Brian White who charges forward to get on the end of JP Rooney’s lay-off, but the big midfielder’s shot smacks off the outside of the post and wide. Louth will count the cost of these missed chances.
Shane Lennon is replaced. It’s not been a going day for the Louth full forward. From Louth’s next attack Colm Judge has a go but it drops just under the crossbar and Brendan Murphy shows safe hands to catch and clear.
Meath keep the ball for what seems like an age, like Xavi, Iniesta & Co. It ends with Anthony Moyles and he takes the responsibility with a fine score. Meath back in front.
Eoghan Harrington is blown up for touching the ball on the ground, but replays suggest that was a harsh one too. There have been a few of those. On this occasion Meath are handed a reprieve by Brian White’s wayward kick.
Louth have the winning of this but they’re doing a few silly things that could really prove crucial. Just now Andy McDonnell fists straight over the sideline. Still, the Wee County are dominating possession.
Meath’s first point of the second half comes from a Cian Ward free. Michael Fanning has picked up a heavy knock and is off for Louth, with the veteran Aaron Hoey on in his place.
A sight of the Meath bench. “Eamonn O’Brien will not panic,” says Ger Canning. He may not panic, but he had better do something.
Shane Lennon with the worst wide of the game. He’s been held scoreless so far, and looks to be on course to lose his place on the JOE’s Football All-Stars side.
Meath have a chance for some respite but the usually so reliable Cian Ward is off target with a long-range free. Meath have been completely out of it for the first 13 minutes of the second half.
Louth don’t have to wait long for the lead score, however. Adrian Reid runs straight at the Meath defence, sells Eoghan Harrington with a dummy and curls it over with the outside of his left. Brilliant point.
Mark O’Brien from Kells has dropped us a line at shout@joe.ie. “Good game, this,” he writes. “Louth on top at the start of the second half but Meath will be masters.”
Meanwhile, Mark Brennan with a poor wide from 20 metres out.
The sides are level, and deservedly so for Louth. Colm Judge is out in front of Chris O’Connor and doesn’t even try to beat his man, kicking over with barely a backswing.
Stephen Fitzpatrick, the son of the Louth manager, has a rush of blood to the head with a wasteful wide. Paddy Keenan looked to be better positioned for a pass on that occasion.
A strange, strange decision by Sludden, and not his first. Nigel Crawford goes down to pick up the ball, Paddy Keenan comes in with a boot but Crawford is penalised. And booked for his troubles. It’s White again and this time his range is spot on.
Both Eoghan Harrington and Anthony Moyles touch the ball on the ground but Louth only get one free. It’s Brian White but he screws it wide.
Just the start Louth needed. Ray Finnegan, Mark Brennan and Andy McDonnell all involved and Brian White in space kicks a beautiful score.
Teams are back out on the pitch, and we’re almost ready to go again. Ref Martin Sludden doing a little jig before he throws it in.
Half-time: Meath 0-8 Louth 0-5
There’s the short whistle. Meath lead by three at the break.
Meath should be much further ahead, says Pat Spillane. And it’s hard to disagree with him, once you forget about the two clear goal chances that Louth have missed. Tony Davis reckons it’s a very entertaining game. If there’s one thing worse than being mocked, it’s being mocked by a Corkman.
It’s been an unconvincing 35 minutes of play. Louth have created 12 scoring chances and taken five. That’s via Ger “Statto” Canning.
A third goal attempt of the half for Louth, and a third wide. This time it was Mark Brennan, but it never looked on, and not only because he was under severe pressure.
At the other end, Graham Reilly finds himself in an acre of space, not for the first time. And for the fourth time, he finds the target.
Colm Judge taps over the free but Meath respond immediately, Gary O’Brien setting up Nigel Crawford for the score. And as if to underline the grievance of that Reilly yellow card, they quickly add another through Graham Reilly, his third of the day.
A soft free, says Martin Carney, as Kevin Reilly is fingered for a challenge on Shane Lennon at the edge of the large square. Reilly is booked by referee Martin Sludden. Crazy stuff. It looked like Sludden was struggling to keep up with the play, so a free and a yellow card was a way for him to get his breath.
Cian Ward misses a difficult free for Meath, which was greeted with a chorus of catcalls from the red-clad supporters. “The booing of the Louth fans is most unsavoury and unnecessary,” says Martin Carney unnecessarily, if not unsavourily.
Both forward lines are struggling to find their feet. Shane Lennon and JP Rooney have been wide and short respectively for Louth in the last few minutes. Given the number of wides and missed chances, it’s hard to say defences have been on top.
Graham Reilly with his second point puts Meath back in front. Joe Sheridan and Stephen Bray both involved and Reilly finishes from an acute angle.
Another great Louth goal chance goes to waste. A long ball into the Meath defence causes all sorts of problems, Colm Judge frees the inrushing Shane Lennon but his left-foot strike goes just wide of the far post. It was a narrow angle, but Lennon – who has been well enough marshalled by Kevin Reilly to this point – will be disappointed not to have found the net.
And now they’re level. White with another free after Andy McDonnell’s direct running draws a free from Chris O’Connor.
Brian White with his first free of the day. Given the way things have gone for the last ten minutes or so, Louth will be happy enough to be just one behind.
Cian Ward wins a free off Eamonn McAuley, picks himself up and converts a simple free. Meath have come from two down to go two up, completely dominating possession during that time. However, they’ve struck wide after wide, with Shane O’Rourke just now hitting his side’s sixth.
Interestingly, both goalkeepers, Neil Gallagher and Brendan Murphy, have played League of Ireland soccer for Longford Town.
Or maybe not so interestingly.
Bray has started just like he left off against Dublin. Demands the ball off Graham Reilly, steadies himself and slots another one. Louth were expected to have the stronger midfield where Paddy Keenan and Brian White have been brilliant this year, but the Royals have owned the ball in that sector for most of this one.
Stephen Bray skins Eamonn McAuley and curls over an excellent point but Meath should be in front. Cian Ward and Caoimhin King have been off target with decent openings as Louth’s back-line, which was pumped up over the first five or six minutes, begins to creak.
Colm Judge doesn’t look too brave as he waves at a bouncing ball, allowing Meath to counter. Graham Reilly finds himself in space and takes advantage with a fine point.
A hugely encouraging start by Louth. Captain and star midfielder Paddy Keenan ghosts in to full forward and given a few yards of space by Nigel Crawford, curls over a fine score. That’s a taste of what we’ve seen all summer from Keenan.
Rooney gets a quick chance to make amends and does so. Again gets away from Eoghan Harrington and chips it over off his left. That came at the end of some impressive defensive work from the Wee County.
Coulda, shoulda been a goal for Louth. A raking sideline ball from Brian White found JP Rooney in space but his low drive goes a foot the wrong side of the post.
Anthony Moyles, who was named at right half back, has unsurprisingly lined out at centre back.
No-one knows who won the toss but it doesn’t matter. There’s no breeze at all, I’m told.
Ready for the national anthem. President McAleese is here, we’re told. Ger Canning, the font of all knowledge, points out that the last time Louth were in a Leinster final, Lemass was Taoiseach, JFK was not yet in the White House and the twist was a dance craze.
Yikes.
Meath have the best forward unit in the game, says Pat Spillane. However, he goes dangerously close to talking bunkum when he addresses the Stephen Bray issue. “He’s been playing great this year,” says Pat, neatly ignoring the fact that the former county was under pressure for his place before returning to form against the Dubs.
However, as Pat and his soccer and rugby clones Eamo and Hooky would point out, never let the facts get in the way of a good argument. He’s made a career out of it, after all.
Speaking to RTE’s Joanne Cantwell from pitchside at Croke Park, former Louth favourite Colin Kelly is still bitter about events long ago, recalling a disputed point from Graham Geraghty which did for the Wee County in 1998.
Geraghty is also at Croker. He’s confident of a Meath win.
The forwards on both sides take a massive reputation into this game. Meath have averaged a total of more than 0-21 this summer and bagged five goals against Dublin last time out so the Louth backs – who’ve conceded 1-16 and 2-10 in their two most recent Championship outings – are sure to find themselves under pressure at some point.
If you’ve a few minutes to spare for some more build-up, we spoke to one of Louth’s key men, centre half back Michael Fanning, this week. Click here for that.
First things first: the players. Here’s a reminder of the teams.
Louth: N Gallagher; E McAuley, D Finnegan, R Greene; R Finnegan, M Fanning, J O’Brien; P Keenan, B White; A McDonnell, M Brennan, A Reid; C Judge, S Lennon, JP Rooney.
Meath: B Murphy, C O’Connor, K Reilly, E Harrington; A Moyles, G O’Brien, C King; B Meade, N Crawford; S Kenny, J Sheridan, G Reilly; C Ward, S O’Rourke, S Bray.
