THE flags are out, the weather is good and the whole county is hitting Croke Park — it’s 1996 all over again in Meath.
Oasis are at the peak of their powers, a young Meath team have dethroned Dublin in the Leinster Championship and are one game away from the All-Ireland SFC final.
That summer, Meath beat Ulster champions Tyrone in the last four and tomorrow, we face Anglo Celt Cup holders Donegal. Seán Boylan led us to the promised land in 1996.
And I’m not saying Robbie Brennan will deliver Sam Maguire, but there’s no reason we can’t beat Donegal and get back to our first decider since 2001.
There’s a huge buzz around the county — we have waited such a long time for this level of excitement.
Tomorrow is extra special closer to home too as my best mate Gary’s son, Ben, will be a flag-bearer on the pitch when the teams run out — a dream come true as he is football-daft.
It’s fantastic — having missed out on promotion from Division 2 in the league, to be 70 minutes from an All-Ireland final is such a contrast.
Seeing off Dublin was a huge result and even though Louth won the Leinster final, Meath are here on merit after beating Kerry in the All-Ireland series to top the group, then weathering a second-half Damien Comer-inspired Galway storm two weeks ago.
Last year, a lot of people in Meath, never mind across the country, didn’t know who Jordan Morris, Eoghan Frayne and Ciarán Caulfield were but they are household names now.
Meath’s summer looked over before it had even begun when coaches Joe McMahon and Martin Corey quit on the eve of the Championship.
Nobody knew what was going on, it was all doom and gloom but huge credit has to go to Brennan, he rallied the troops and I believe the players took much of the responsibility on themselves too.
It’s all well and good having a good manager but you need the players to drive it on and Meath have grown with every game they’ve played.
They’re in bonus territory already, they have nothing to lose and they are probably in the same position as they were against Dublin, against Kerry and against Galway.
Nobody gave them a chance of winning except themselves. But now the Meath public are starting to believe too.
We have a lot of good young players there that don’t fear the top teams — and the year is not yet over.
From speaking to a few of the lads and reading interviews with players over the last week or two, they have huge belief in their ability and they won’t be found wanting tomorrow.
They have no fear but they have a a never-say-die attitude and will keep going.
They could have rolled over when Galway came back at them with two quick second-half goals, but captain Frayne responded with a vital score before Morris found the net.
They fought back and pushed for home.
Supporters were looking for the qualities of the famous old Meath teams — that the game was never over until the final whistle. And we’ve seen that from this side.
They’re not a physically massive team, but they’re full of guts and they get stuck in.
They are particularly good with breaking ball around the middle area, which provides a platform for attack.
PAY NO HEED
They’ve been written off against the Dubs, against the Kingdom and against the Tribe but have gone from strength to strength.
And hopefully, that continues, because tomorrow all the pressure is on Donegal.
Jim McGuinness’ men were dumped out by Galway at this stage last year. And in year two of his second stint, the Glenties man will be looking to go at least one step further.
Obviously they want to win an All-Ireland, but Meath have a lot of very good young players.
Michael Murphy has shown he has lost none of his sparkle, but Seán Rafferty has been outstanding all year at full-back for the Royals and has handled anything — or anyone — thrown his way.
I think he’s going to relish marking Murphy — what aspiring young player wouldn’t?
Donegal duo Michael Langan and Ciarán Thompson are playing good football too and if Donegal get a run on us early doors, the game could quickly get away from us so a good start is key.
Coming down the stretch, if it’s close, Donegal will really start to feel the heat but I reckons our young cubs have what it takes to win.
RISING STARS
Yes, McGuinness has oodles of talent, but Meath are not wanting on that front either, with Frayne and Morris the real standouts.
Morris scored 1-6 against Galway and Frayne is such a leader, at the tender age of 22.
Both of them will need to be tuned in tomorrow, but the Meath lads seem to have a great bond, they are all good mates and there’s no ego.
They remind me of a club team in the way they are all in it for each other and the cause and never stop working.
It will be such a wonderful occasion, with more than 70,000 tickets already sold. And overall it’s been a brilliant Championship for football, but especially for Meath football.
And just like in 1996, something about this journey tells me it’s not over yet.
