BREAKING NEWS... Meath and Derry set for dance in last chance saloon

If you want to be the best then you have to beat the best and Meath face one of the toughest tests imaginable in round 2B of the All-Ireland SFC series as they must travel to Celtic Park to face Derry on the weekend 13th/14th June.

Off the back of championship losses to Westmeath in the Leinster SFC quarter-final and to Cork in the opening game of the All-Ireland series, Meath need to win in Derry to prolong their summer.

Derry have endured a mixed bag of a season so far, but seem to be hitting peak form at the right time despite their loss to Armagh in last Sunday's All-Ireland SFC round 1 game in the Athletic Grounds.

Having failed to win a game in league or championship in 2025, Derry started this year with a NFL Div 2 game against Meath in Croke Park where the Royals recovered from a slow start which left them 0-3 to 1-5 behind to lead by 0-11 to 1-5 at the break.

Sean Brennan bounced back from his error that led to the Derry goal by scoring a two-point free and Jordan Morris added to the tally as Meath extended their lead to 0-14 to 1-5.

However, Derry clawed their way back to within a point with Shane McGuigan and Paul Cassidy impressing before Jack Flynn gave Meath some breathing room with a two-point free for the 0-19 to 1-13 win.

Derry bounced back in round two with victory over Tyrone and after wins over Kildare and Offaly they followed up with a 20-point hammering of Cork to put themselves firmly in the promotion frame.

However a surprise loss to Louth in Ardee scuppered those ambitions and despite victory over Cavan on the last day they missed out on going up.

With no time to wallow, Derry opened their Ulster campaign with an easy 2-23 to 1-13 win over Antrim before losing out in the most thrilling and spectacular circumstances to Monaghan in the semi-final after Jack McCarron's stunning sideline strike had forced extra-time.

A tough draw away to Armagh proved too much for Derry in the All-Ireland series, but their performance in the 1-13 to 1-18 loss will give Ciaran Meenagh's men plenty of encouragement against a Meath side that surrendered an eight-point half-time lead against Cork in their round one contest before slumping to a 1-24 to 0-30 defeat.

All-Ireland SFC series full draw: Round 2B - Derry v Meath; Kildare v Kerry; Cavan v Dublin; Monaghan v Roscommon; Round 2A - Tyrone v Mayo; Armagh v Louth; Donegal v Cork; Galway v Westmeath.