The day that changed the face of Ladies football

The 5th September 2021 was one of the great days in Croke Park.

Pure heroism from Meath as they won their first Ladies All-Ireland SFC title, and an outpouring of emotion after the final hooter blew that made the air crackle in Dublin 3.

Not many people gave Meath a chance but everyone in their own dressing-room was confident they could stop Dublin’s bid for five in a row.

They certainly played with that conviction because they were the better team from start to finish. The game intelligence for a group of players with so little experience was truly remarkable.

Time and again they made Dublin dizzy with their ability to retain possession before striking like cobras when they did make it into opposition territory.

This was the ultimate team performance by Meath, but some deserve extra-special mention.

There are very few sportspeople in Gaelic Games who send a buzz around a stadium as soon as they get their hands on the ball, but Vikki Wall is one such person.

Time and again she burst forward with great power and athleticism to leave Dublin defenders scattered like rag-dolls in her wake.

Emma Duggan showed why she’s regarded as one of the brightest young talents in the country with a haul of 1-2 from play and some beautiful passing that created openings for others. Niamh O’Sullivan sniped three points in attack, and Emma Troy showed remarkable bravery and initiative to drive forward and score two herself.

Goalkeeper Monica McGuirk who made a vital save from Hannah Tyrrell in the first-half and gave her team a wonderful platform to play with her laser-guided passing.

Meath seized the initiative from the get-go when Wall won possession from the throw-in and burst through the Dublin defence to win a free that Stacey Grimes converted to give her team the perfect start.

Sinead Aherne and Niamh O’Sullivan traded points before Meath made a breakthrough on seven minutes with the only goal.

Ciara Trant’s kick-out was claimed by Emma Duggan who took a look before arcing alob over the back-peddling goalkeeper and into the net.

Hannah Tyrrell replied with a point for Dublin and would prove to be a thorn in Meath’s side all day, finishing with four from play, but she was the only member of their attack who posed a consistent threat.

Meath led by 1-4 to 0-4 at the water-break, and were even better in the second quarter.

For the second-time in the match Emma Troy got forward from corner-back to get on the end of a mesmeric team move and finish coolly.

If ever a score summed up Meath’s combination of ambition and footballing nous, it was this one. It put the Royals five point ahead, and they still held that advantage at half-time, leading by 1-8 to 0-6.

Dublin started the second half quite well with a Hannah Tyrrell point and Carla Rowe then cut the gap to three, but they never really looked like cutting open Meath’s superbly organised defence.

And when Stacey Grimes and Emma Duggan clipped over two classy points either side of the second-half water-break to restore Meath’s five-point advantage, the sense that we were watching history in the making really grew.

Dublin came with a burst of three points that briefly threatened a late comeback, but any jangling Meath nerves were settled when O’Sullivan curled over another brilliant point from a tight angle.

In the final couple of minutes Meath once again displayed their ability to retain possession with cool passing and canny movement, and when the hooter eventually blew the explosion of noise that swiftly followed it was something special.

Meath - Monica McGuirk; Emma Troy (0-2), Mary Kate Lynch, Katie Newe; Aoibheann Leahy, Aoibhín Cleary, Shauna Ennis; Orlagh Lally, Máire O’Shaughnessy, Orla Byrne, Stacey Grimes (0-3), Niamh O’Sullivan (0-3); Vikki Wall, Emma Duggan (1-2), Bridgetta Lynch (0-1). Subs - Megan Thynne for Lynch, Niamh Gallogly for Leahy, Emma White for O’Sullivan, Shelly Melia for Lally.

Dublin - Ciara Trant; Martha Byrne (0-1), Niamh Collins, Leah Caffrey; Sinead Goldrick, Siobhan McGrath, Orlagh Nolan; Jennifer Dunne, Lauren Magee; Hannah Tyrrell (0-7), Lyndsey Davey (0-1), Carla Rowe (0-1), Sinead Aherne (0-1), Niamh Hetherton, Siobhan Killeen. Subs - Caoimhe O’Connor for Hetherton, Niamh McEvoy for Killeen, Olwen Carey for McGrath, Kate Sullivan (0-1) for Nolan, Aoife Kane for Davey.

Referee - Brendan Rice (Down).