Leinster SFC Quarter-final/Dublin 1-11 Meath 0-14:Maybe this was coming on the law of averages. The counties have met nine times since the legendary series of draws in 1991 and were probably due another.
Yesterday's Bank of Ireland Leinster football quarter-final unfolded in a traditional way: Dublin blowing hot and cold and looking comfortably superior in those phases when they strung it together but Meath chipped away all of the time and took their chances more efficiently all the way until the end of an entertaining afternoon.
Dublin would have to be the less content about the outcome. Manager Paul Caffrey remarked afterwards that it might be the start of another period of great rivalry between the counties - and that admission was surely something Dublin would have preferred not to have to announce yesterday evening in Croke Park.
Once more they lost the initiative having opened up a five-point lead in both halves. There were subdued performances from a number of the established players: Bryan Cullen was less authoritative than in Leinster last year, Paul Griffin got taken for three points by Stephen Bray while Ciarán Whelan and Darren Magee were unable to dominate their Meath counterparts for whom the industrious Mark Ward was outstanding.
Place kicking was again a problem. Having nailed a couple of early chances Tomás Quinn subsequently got the yips from the dead ball. The all too identifiable threats of Alan Brogan and Conal Keaney delivered between them eight points' worth from play, but there was little evidence of menace on a broader front even if the work-rate of Colin Moran, who took some very heavy knocks in the early stages, and Shane Ryan was all that would have been hoped for from them.
The performances of the new Dublin boys were mixed. At wing forward Diarmuid Connolly showed some of the expected good touch, but it was hard to describe his overall input as more than peripheral and he was replaced by the busier Ray Cosgrove for the final quarter.
Ross McConnell had a happier debut, nominally at full back although able to spend farther out the field.
For Meath, the momentum was very much in the other direction. There had been question marks over the recent positive run of results because the quality of the opposition had for one reason or another been open to doubt.
But yesterday the improvement under Colm Coyle was maintained. The full back line creaked at times, but there, as elsewhere, there was plenty of endeavour. The full forward line contributed more than that with a couple of good scoring displays from an initially hesitant Joe Sheridan, who recovered to end the day with three points, and the lively Stephen Bray, who gave Paul Griffin a reprise of last year's All-Ireland semi-final horror show and also scored three from play.
Graham Geraghty was central to a couple of controversies and sailed close to the wind - to the extent that some of his tackling might draw down the attention of the authorities should referee Jim McKee be found to have been unaware of the incidents.
There were also a couple of outbreaks of the ancient practice but new offence of 'contributing to a melee', but those involved can rest easy that the defence of the referee 'dealing with the situation' tends to substitute 'noticing' for 'dealing with'.
In general, McKee had a good match, although there were three controversial calls, all of which favoured Dublin.
In the 21st minute Geraghty read Peadar Byrne's high ball expertly and scored a goal only to be penalised for a push on McConnell. TV replays seemed to substantiate the referee's decision, although the physical contact was negligible. In other circumstances the goal would perhaps have stood.
Then, in injury-time at the end of the first half, Connolly held up the ball and off loaded to Keaney whose dropping shot was tipped into the net by Brogan despite a suggestion that he had been in the square ahead of the kick. Again replays suggested that it had been a 50-50 call.
It always looked likely to take something unusual to beat Meath goalkeeper Brendan Murphy whose form was excellent and featured two top-class saves in the first half that prevented goals from Brogan and Quinn.
The goal sent Dublin in at the break a goal to the good, a state of affairs that must have come as a relief given that they had wasted a 0-5 to nil lead, Meath taking until the 20th minute to get on the scoreboard, but piling on the pressure once they did.
Once the second half started Dublin were again out of the traps quickly. Keaney took two good points to restore the margin to five. By the 47th minute the lead was the same after Quinn pointed for 1-9 to 0-7.
The key substitution for Meath was the arrival of Cian Ward. Hardly on the field a minute he rifled over a 45 to start Meath's final quarter recovery rolling and added four dead-ball points including the injury-time line ball that he swung over to earn his team a second chance.
Driven by the replacement's impeccable shooting, Meath became the latest side to hunt down Dublin in the closing quarter and by the 63rd minute Bray had tied scores at 0-12 to 1-9. The champions weren't in a state of paralysis, however, and still posed a more menacing attacking threat.
Quinn and Brogan had made inroads in the left corner, but went for scores from tight angles. Still, once faced with the seriousness of the position Dublin conjured scores. Keaney got one after a combination between Whelan and Ryan and in the 69th minute the latter opened up a chance for Moran and his shot put Dublin ahead going into injury-time.
But Meath weren't going to relent and will have top-scorer Brian Farrell back for the replay in a fortnight. Dublin hope to have Jason Sherlock fit and they'll need the additional creativity.
The attendance of 78,002 was over 4,000 short of capacity, which must mean that a large number of ticket holders for the sold-out event looked out the window and thought better of the journey.
MEATH: 1. B Murphy; 2. E Harrington, 3. D Fay, 4. N McKeigue; 5. S Kenny, 6. A Moyles, 7. C King (0-1); 8. M Ward, 9. N Crawford; 10. P Curran (0-1, free), 11. K Reilly, 12. P Byrne; 13. S Bray (0-3), 14. J Sheridan (0-3), 15. G Geraghty (0-1). Subs: 19. C Ward (0-5, two frees, lineball and two 45s) for Curran (48 mins), 21. J Donegan for Crawford (50 mins), 28. S O'Rourke for Sheridan (69 mins), 17. N McLaughlin for King (72 mins). Yellow cards: A Moyles (43 mins), G Geraghty (55 mins), S Kenny (58 mins).
DUBLIN: 1. S Cluxton; 2. D Henry, 3. R McConnell, 4. P Griffin; 7. B Cahill, 6. B Cullen, 5. P Casey; 8. C Whelan, 9. D Magee; 10. C Moran (0-1), 11. S Ryan (0-1), 12. D Connolly; 14. C Keaney (0-5, one free), 13. A Brogan (1-1), 15. T Quinn (0-3, one 45, one free). Subs: 25. R Cosgrove for Connolly (53 mins). Yellow cards: D Henry (49 mins), P Griffin (67 mins).
Attendance: 78,002. Referee: J McKee (Armagh).
