TWELVE MONTHS since Jim McGuinness admitted that his side ‘ran out of steam’ in their bid to reach the All-Ireland SFC final, Donegal delivered the goods as they charged towards a first showpiece since 2014 like a freight train.
In the wake of their defeat to Galway at the same stage last summer, McGuinness lamented their failure to convert nine of 14 scoring opportunities in the second half.
But having seen his team hit 3-13 after the change of ends at a packed Croke Park, there were no such complaints this time after they ruthlessly disposed of Meath’s attempt to take another major scalp.
The Royals have already tasted unlikely Championship victories over Dublin, Kerry and Galway this summer. Hopes of a first All-Ireland final appearance in 24 years were therefore high.
But Robbie Brennan’s superb first season at the helm was brought to an end in chastening fashion. Even at half-time, things looked ominous for Meath as they trailed by 0-13 to 0-8.
With a Sam Maguire decider against Kerry to come in a fortnight, Donegal could even afford to withdraw 35-year-old talisman Michael Murphy with 25 minutes still to play.
Murphy made way just moments after kicking his side into an eight-point lead. By then, the Ulster champions had also bagged the first of three second-half goals.
Donegal can now look forward to a first All-Ireland final appearance since the defeat to the Kingdom 11 years ago. McGuinness’ side played five games in 99 days to reach that stage then.
It has taken them twice as many outings in the same number of days to do it again.
Every facet of Donegal’s output was impressive here. Singling out just one of their awesome attackers would do a disservice to the others.
At the back, high standards were set by the colossal contributions of Brendan McCole and Finnbarr Roarty.
On a day when Paddy McBrearty came off the bench and kicked 0-3, McGuinness noted that the strength of his panel has been a key factor in taking Donegal a step further than in 2024.
He said: “We didn’t know at that stage the rule changes that were coming down the line and the physical demands of the rule changes, but certainly we knew that we needed people to come in and give us more depth and strengthen.
“We knew we had to be stronger and it would build its own energy within the group because it’d be more competitive and people want to play naturally, so I think we did see that today.
“We were able to make those changes the whole way through the game and going in to play Kerry in an All-Ireland final, you’re going to need every man that you’ve got.
“That’s a huge challenge and they’re so confident about what they do.
“There’s a rite of passage there almost in terms of winning All-Irelands, so that’s the first thing we’re going to have to meet head on.
“But certainly it’ll not be 15 players, it’ll be every single player that can get onto the pitch that’ll be needed.”
During their run to the last four, Meath have often thrived with the wind at their backs.
However, they lacked the accuracy required to take advantage of the strong breeze behind them as they attacked the Canal End in the first half.
From nine two-point efforts, only twice were orange flags raised. In total, the 16 shots they took before the interval yielded just six scores.
Their best goal chance also slipped away as Jordan Morris put too much purchase on a pass aimed at playing Matthew Costello through.
Brennan said: “It’s disappointing for the lads really because I’m absolutely convinced we’re better than that.
“What we left behind us in the first half didn’t give us enough of a platform then to even try and attack anything in the second half.
“With the rules the way they are and there’s so much space, if that momentum – that great buzzword now – goes against you, it’s very hard to wrestle it back.
“They’re so good at controlling the game, it’s nearly impossible.”
Donegal were flawless in front of the posts for almost the entirety of the first quarter. They nailed their first six attempts and did not register a miss until the 17th minute.
Yet they became similarly wasteful thereafter and ended the half with a tally of seven wides.
They also failed to find the net from the three goal opportunities that came their way in a five-minute spell just before the break.
Donal Keogan came to the rescue with a save for Meath when goalkeeper Billy Hogan was beaten by Conor O’Donnell.
A fine stop from Hogan then denied Hugh McFadden, before Murphy had to settle for a point as he was unable to keep his shot down with the goal at his mercy.
To a chorus of boos from Meath fans who were angered by a late challenge from Murphy on Seán Rafferty that went unpunished, the veteran Glenswilly kicked a brilliant two-point free into the wind early on.
The score put Donegal back in the ascendancy after the lead was very briefly seized by Meath for the only time in the game thanks to a two-pointer from Eoghan Frayne.
It was a dismal first half for Brennan’s side, who went 17 minutes without a score at one stage despite playing with the aid of the wind.
And they struggled badly on kickouts after Bryan Menton was forced off with an injury in the 20th minute.
The Meath boss said: “Bryan is an exceptional leader for us and all those things that you’d expect him to be.
“But one of his key things is that he’s so good at organising around that back line or the middle line for us.
“There’s no doubt he was a loss but you’re going to lose guys at this level and you have to be able to replace it again.”
When Donegal’s first goal eventually came in the 42nd minute, it was engineered by a Caolan McColgan. But the finish from Oisín Gallen was sublime.
The second was scored by Ciarán Moore, who expertly steered the ball beyond Hogan’s reach after being teed up by Ryan McHugh.
With 49 minutes on the clock, it was already the final nail in Meath’s coffin as Donegal held a 2-16 to 0-11 advantage.
Thanks to Frayne and Conor Duke, Meath ended the third quarter by posting back-to-back scores for the first time in the game. But they were blitzed again as Donegal outscored them by 1-9 to 0-2 until the finish.
O’Donnell finally got his goal in the 59th minute as the Carndonagh man coolly converted after the ball was squared by Gallen.
Brennan added: “I hope we’ve reawakened that drive and love for Meath football in the county because I think we’ve been crying out for it and today showed it. It was a complete sell-out, I think.
“But it’s important we take that now and keep building that towards the future. You’re not going to win every match, as we always know, but we can’t drop off now. We have to keep pushing.”
DONEGAL: S Patton 0-1, 1 ‘45; F Roarty, B McCole, P Mogan 0-1; R McHugh 0-1, EB Gallagher, C McColgan; H McFadden, M Langan 0-4; C Thompson 0-2, S O’Donnell 0-1, C Moore 1-1; C O’Donnell 1-3, M Murphy 0-6, 1tpf, 1f, O Gallen 1-2.
Subs: P McBrearty 0-3 for Murphy 45 mins, J McGee for McFadden 50, C McGonagle for McColgan 51, D Ó Baoill 0-1 for McHugh 55, O McFadden-Ferry for Mogan 58.
MEATH: B Hogan; S Rafferty 0-1, S Lavin, R Ryan; C Caulfield, S Coffey, D Keogan; B Menton, A O’Neill; M Costello 0-1f, R Kinsella 0-3, 1tp, K Curtis 0-3; C Duke 0-1, J Morris 0-1, E Frayne 0-5, 1tp, 1f.
Subs: C Gray for Menton 20 mins, E Harkin for O’Neill 46, J McEntee for Lavin 50, B O’Halloran for Curtis 57, S Walsh for Kinsella 62.
REFEREE: P Faloon (Down)
