The good, the bad and the ugly 30 years on from '96

Plenty of comparisons can be made between Meath then and Meath now

In 1966, the spaghetti western ‘The Good, the Bad and the Ugly’ starring Clint Eastwood was released. The title of the iconic movie has become a phrase widely used to describe, well, anything with good, bad, and ugly characteristics.

In 1996, 30 years after the release of Sergio Leone’s masterpiece, Meath and Mayo met in a memorable All-Ireland SFC final that, depending on whose perspective you take, could be described as good, bad or ugly. Last Saturday, 30 years on from that infamous All-Ireland decider, in some ways, history repeated itself as there was good, bad and ugly elements to the Royals’ battle in the west on Saturday which pulled the curtains on their 2026 All-Ireland SFC campaign.

THE GOOD

The 1996 All-Ireland SFC was during the peak of Sean Boylan's powers and ‘the good’ from Meath’s perspective was that it was the coming of age of a new generation of Meath players that reached three All-Ireland finals, winning two of them and also won three Leinster titles. Trevor Giles, Darren Fay and John McDermott all won their first All-Stars after Meath’s All-Ireland glory in '96.

It may not feel like it at the moment but there were certainly some very positive take-aways for Meath from Saturday's performance at Castlebar. For the first 25 minutes, Meath did not put a foot wrong and the home side struggled to contain the Royals’ strong running game. They were very, very good. Two weeks ago, doubts loomed over just how competitive Meath are at the highest level. Those doubts have been firmly put to bed now ahead of their return to NFL Div 1 next season.

THE BAD

Given the cultural impact of the 1996 decider, history has somewhat forgotten that, particularly in the drawn game, Meath’s performance was actually quite ‘bad’. Mayo were completely dominant in that first outing. Of course, the westerners have suffered several heartbreaks in All-Ireland deciders since then but from Meath’s perspective, there is a strong case to be made that the 1996 All-Ireland success was the most fortunate of their seven titles.

There were elements of Meath’s second-half performance at Castlebar on Saturday that, on reflection, can be picked apart and described as poor. Turnovers were a real issue and there were several crucial ones that Mayo took full advantage of and punished Meath. Down the stretch, several times Meath took the wrong option or worked an opportunity but crucially failed to convert a score. However, the worst part of Saturday’s clash from a Meath perspective was something that was out of their control completely. To describe the decision to issue Ronan Jones a red card as ‘bad’ would be the understatement of the last 30 years.

THE UGLY

The ‘ugly’ element of the 1996 decider is a fairly obvious one. The massive row that broke out 10 minutes into the replay in front of Hill 16 was, without a doubt ugly. Having said that, the way some of the players were treated in the aftermath of the final was also just as, if not more, grotesque. Of course, it has become a cultural phenomenon in the sport and it holds a rather significant place in GAA history. If we are being totally honest with ourselves though, if it happened in an All-Ireland final today, it would probably receive a lot more backlash than it did back then.

However, at least in the famous 1996 melee, nothing spilled over between supporters and those involved with both sides. The actions of one Mayo 'supporter' after the final whistle was the ugliest element of Saturday’s contest. Robbie Brennan was in discussion with the referee, Paul Faloon when a Mayo fan initiated a physical confrontation with the Meath manager.

After a few moments of madness, stewards and a Garda eventually stepped in and rectified the situation. The moments after the final whistle of a big game where the crowd are allowed to spill onto the pitch are very memorable, particularly for family and friends of players who are either congratulating or commiserating with their loved ones. It is also very special for kids who get to meet their heroes and ask for an autograph or a picture, but the actions of that one Mayo 'supporter' have no place amidst the post-match pitch invasion.

The 2026 Round 3 All-Ireland SFC clash between the Royals and the Westerners was certainly not as memorable as the 1996 All-Ireland decider, at least from a Meath perspective.

However, it was somewhat historic in that it was the first time that the two counties with fantastic footballing history met competitively under the new rules that have transformed the game.

From a neutral perspective, Saturday's contest certainly met and surpassed expectations. The likelihood is that there will be plenty of big meetings between these sides over the next three decades but if history continues on this trend, the 2056 clash between Meath and Mayo promises to be a cracker.