Odowd labels mchughs comments as irrelevant

Martin McHugh’s assertion that Meath football is in decline since the ‘Celtic Tiger’ era was described as “irrelevant old stuff” by manager Mick O’Dowd at last night’s Media Q&A in Knightsbrook Trim.
Former Donegal star McHugh hinted in 2012 that Meath football had gone soft and last Monday he revisited those claims following the Royal County’s less than convincing 2-19 to 3-10 Leinster SFC quarter-final win over Wicklow.
“The one county I’d be very fearful for is Meath, I don’t know what’s happening in Meath football,” said McHugh when asked which counties could compete with last year’s provincial winners on RTE’s Morning Ireland.
They’re a big county, they’ve a big population and have the tradition of being a very, very strong Gaelic county, and I don’t know, maybe the players are not coming through, maybe through the Celtic Tiger they had it too good.
“Look, we’ll see, but you’d feel that if they came up against Dublin at this stage, that unless they park two or three buses, they’ll be in big trouble.
“You just feel at home that normally Meath, you’re expecting them to win by at least 10 points. Wicklow had a very, very poor league. Fair play to Wicklow, you have to give them credit.”
Meath manager O’Dowd was reluctant to get drawn into what McHugh, who once described Colm ‘Gooch’ Cooper as a ‘two-trick pony’, had to say. However, the Skryne man was a bit more critical of the fixtures structure and the lack of coverage afforded to some games.
“Those comments are irrelevant old stuff, he’s probably a bit of a one trick analyst himself isn’t he, to coin a phrase he used himself. These thing are just stuff some fellas come out with and for supporters to debate. We don’t have the time to be dwelling on stuff like that,” said O’Dowd.
“When the Sunday Game was on I wasn’t watching because I was watching our own game back. The amount of coverage our game got probably wasn’t good. There was six games on, they could have spread it out a little bit more evenly because there are responsibilities to sponsors.
“The biggest thing is the fixtures issue. I have said it during the league that playing O’Byrne Cup, Sigerson Cup, Leinster u-21 FC and seven intensive league games in January, February and March is ridiculous. Then having 10 weeks off before a championship and having the quarter-finals of the same competition on different weekends isn’t right.
“Dublin have four weeks wait before their semi-final, we have two weeks before our, Kildare, if they hadn’t drawn their first game, would have had three weeks. Everyone is working off different preparation periods, there is no sense to that.
“That is just me talking as someone preparing a team. Obviously there are other issues that people have to look at when they are making these fixtures,” said O’Dowd.