Meath's ability to recover from impossible situations can be compared to the situation in the old "follyer upper" black and white films such as The Perils of Pauline when the heroine is tied to the railway track with the train bearing down on her, only to see her rescued in the nick of time in the following episode.

Episode three of the Meath-Kildare saga in the Leinster championship is set for tomorrow (NB 2.30 throw-in).

In recent times neutral followers of Gaelic games have thrown their sentimental support behind teams like Leitrim footballers, Clare (footballers and hurlers) and, last year, Wexford's hurlers. This year it seems to be the turn of Kildare footballers.

Kildare's efforts down the years, since 1956, have been dogged by bad luck, poor preparation, lack of confidence, and sheer pessimism. Last time out the only one of this quartet still in place was bad luck. They now feel that fortune may follow their recently-found professionalism, confidence and attention to detail.

It seems that Meath are being seen as the villain of recent football dramas. In 1991, they had their wicked way with Dublin after a marathon tie which broke all previous records. Last year they crept up behind Mayo to thwart them in the final reel. Twice this year they have come from behind again to catch Kildare unawares. When triumph seems to be just around the bend for the underdog, the big bad wolf from Meath comes loping along to upset such expectations.

There are a number of key confrontations in tomorrow's game. Jimmy McGuinness and John McDermott can provide Meath with the reliability and solidarity to anchor their side's performance. Their midfield battle with Niall Buckley and Willie McCreery is fascinating.

Meath's selection of Tommy Dowd at centre forward is, probably, another ploy. It is generally accepted that Dowd is the man to play on the edge of the square, where his strength and swift reactions to the mistakes of others can be a powerful weapon for Meath.

Kildare may feel a little more comfortable than they did in the second drawn match. Cyril Byrne, in goal, Davy Dalton, at full back, Glen Ryan, at centre back, and Buckley and McCreevy, at midfield, will have benefited from the fortnight's respite granted to them since the second drawn match. Dalton answered the call when the incumbent full backs, Ronan Quinn and John Finn, were ruled out through injury. He has served Kildare well for some time. He can do so again. In spite of an uncharacteristic error towards the end of the last match, his commitment, experience and reliability are not in question.

Concerns about the fitness of Padraig Graven, Kildare's freetaker, have been dismissed, but a breakdown in his fitness could be fatal. That leaves the intriguing A N Other in the right corner of the Meath attack. The enforced absence of Graham Geraghty through suspension is a serious blow to Meath. Why Sean Boylan, having nominated Nigel Nestor at left half forward, would then leave the right corner position vacant is something of a mystery.

The obvious man for the job is - given his performance as a substitute last time - Jody Devine. Yet we are told that he, PJ Gillic and Evan Kelly are still in the running for the position. For Meath, doubts may have crept into their minds about the fact that they have struggled at times before being let off the Kildare hook on two occasions.

Those who favour a victory for Kildare will take some inspiration from the fact that they have come through two tough matches and have managed to reach this point with considerable extra experience gained. The logic, which will not necessarily prevail, is that Kildare will have made the most of the morale-boosting experience of having held the All-Ireland champions twice and that they can now go that extra step. Meath's record in such situations is impeccable, but this time they may have gone just that step too far.

The Leinster Council is at pains to point out that the throw-in for the replay of the Meath-Kildare match at Croke Park tomorrow is 2.30. The start was originally fixed for 3.15 and tickets were printed before the starting time was brought forward to facilitate TV coverage. The Croke Park match starts at 2.30 and the Connacht match at 4.15. Both will be shown live on RTE 1.