Royals should prove too strong for Laois
LADIES LEINSTER SFC PREVIEW
Meath's bid to make it three-in-a-row Ladies All-Ireland SFC titles ended in disappointment at the quarter-final hurdle last year with a four-point defeat at the hands of Kerry, writes Tom Gannon.
Their quest to return to the summit will get underway next Sunday with their opening clash in the Leinster SFC against Laois in Pairc Tailteann, 2pm.
To describe Meath's league campaign as a mixed bag would be an understatement. Heavy defeats at the hands of Armagh, Kerry and Galway had many people questioning the abilities of the 2021 and 2022 All Ireland champions. However, a convincing win against Cork in the final round of the league somewhat restored supporters' faith in them.
Shane McCormack's side had been lacking energy and creativity throughout the league campaign but the penny dropped against the Rebels and there were some fantastic performances going forward from the likes of Shelly Melia, Emma Duggan, and Marion Farrelly.
Skryne's Ciara Smyth has also been a vital asset to Meath's attack and at times in those aforementioned games against Kerry, Galway and Armagh, she was one of the few Meath players making a positive impact.
During the league, Meath's defence at times struggled massively to contain elite forwards such as Armagh's Aimee Mackin and Kerry's Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh, who both individually dominated Meath's defence in their respective games. It will be interesting to see how Meath's defence copes with Laois' big attacking threat, Mo Nerney.
Given how poor Meath were against Kerry, Armagh and Galway, the jury is still out on the Royals at the moment. However, that same jury is unlikely to be any wiser after this opening Leinster contest due to how poor Laois' form is at the moment.
Laois were being touted as the next 'Meath' when they won the All Ireland IFC title back in 2022 however since they have been spiraling on a steep downward curve.
Their only bright moment in the past 18 months was beating a very poor Cavan side, which retained their senior status for this year at least.
In March, Westmeath, who are an intermediate side confirmed Laois' relegation from Div 2. On that day only three players remained in the starting 15 from the side that took to the field in the 2022 the All-Ireland Intermediate final.
The man who led them to glory in 2022, Donie Brennan departed his role last year, and last week his replacements, joint managers Tom Devereux and Billy Kiernan vacated the position.
That decision has left Stephen Duff in charge of the O'Moore side on an interim basis. Duff has had various levels of success in the ladies game winning Laois championships with Portlaoise as well as coaching Emma Duggan and DCU to college glory. However Duff has a massive task ahead of him in turning this Laois side's fortunes around.
Laois may have been touted as the next 'Meath' back in 2022 but they have never even gotten close to living up to the expectations that that tag suggests and right now seem like a team that would struggle in the intermediate grade, nevermind senior.
Anything less than a convincing win for the Royals would be a big surprise and then attentions can turn to the rest of the campaign (v Kildare on 28th April and v Dublin on 5th May) with the target being a place in the Leinster SFC final which will be played in Croke Park as part of a double bill with the men's provincial final on Sunday 12th May.