Dublin and Meath have always been the fiercest of GAA rivals, writes Mark McGowan.
One of the all-time great GAA rivalries, few contests quite captured the nation’s attention quite like it. Although championship structure denied them the possibility of a September square-off, there can be little doubt that Dublin versus Meath was the football rivalry of the 1990s. In addition to the historic four-game series in 1991, the Dubs and the Royals would come face-to-face a further seven times, and between them would take claim eight Leinster titles throughout the decade.
Sadly, amidst a rising blue tide, the rivalry has become somewhat diluted over the past 15 years. Meath’s five-goal rout of the Metropolitans in 2010 is increasingly looking like the last kick of a dying mule. But as the embers began to cool on the big pitch, temperatures started to rise indoors.
While Senior Men’s All-Irelands have gone to all four provinces in the small alley since the turn of the millennium, the big court has remained the preserve of the Leinster men; and the senior doubles has become the new battleground upon which the age old Dublin-Meath war is fought.
Between them, the Jacks and the Royals have had a stranglehold on the Senior Softball Doubles championship, accounting for 16 of the last 17 titles. And predictably, there’s been bad blood. Familiarity will breed that.
Eight years after partnering Tom Sheridan to successive 40x20 Senior Doubles titles, Egin Jensen lined up in opposition wearing Dublin blue. That Jensen was living, working, and playing all his handball in the capital was irrelevant to the hordes in attendance from his home county when he and Eoin Kennedy clashed with Sheridan and Walter O’Connor in an All-Ireland Semi-Final in Mullingar in 2005.
In keeping with tradition, no quarter was asked or given, and after two hours of non-stop action, the reigning champions were dethroned and Kennedy and Jensen came out the right side of a 21-19 third game score line, and effectively placing a sword in the side of a partnership who had just won their fourth consecutive title a year previous.
It would be O’Connor’s last real tilt at a title, but in 2008, Sheridan was back with another man at his side. Just weeks shy of his 22nd birthday, Brian Carroll brought an entirely different dynamic to the pairing. He also brought the inherent desire to get one over the old enemy.
Having asserted themselves as the new powerhouse in softball doubles by winning three senior titles on the bounce, in 2008, Kennedy and Jensen met the new-look Royal pairing in the All- Ireland semi-final.
A contest that promised excitement and drama delivered in spades, and in a reverse echo of the 2005 semi-final, this time Sheridan and Carroll edged out the reigning champions in a nail-biting third game by an extremely slender margin.
The Kells duo would go on to defeat Mayo’s Dessie Keegan and Joe McCann for what would be Sheridan’s ninth Senior Doubles title in the big court, with his third different partner.
For any rivalry to be considered truly classic, in addition to the needle, the tension, the unpredictability, and the agony and ecstasy, there must be a fitting stage. And there is no more fitting stage in handball than a packed Croke Park on the eve of the football final.
Since pledging his allegiance to the capital in ’05, the one thing missing from Egin Jensen’s palmares was to be presented with the cup in front of his former county men, and the final point sparked wild celebration from Jensen as Dublin claimed back the trophy and his decision to transfer allegiances to his county of residence was vindicated.
Spanish philosopher George Santayana famously said that “those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” What may have been learned from the Dublin-Meath rivalry of the past few years is hard to pin down exactly, but somehow, another defection saw former Kells clubman Carl Browne transfer to St. Brigid’s in Dublin and replace the retired Jensen as Kennedy’s partner in 2015.
Much like the Jensen switch, Kennedy and Browne achieved immediate success and brought the Softball Doubles title back to the capital, however, the absence through injury of the defending champions meant that the salivating clash of Sheridan, Carroll, and their recently departed clubman would have to wait for another year.
The following year, Sheridan and Carroll reclaimed the throne, and in doing so, not only achieved the satisfaction of denying their former Royal compatriot, but also served to banish the ghosts harboured since losing to Kennedy and Jensen on handball’s biggest night in 2009.
Last year was a repeat of ’16, but now the most storied of inter-county GAA rivalries comes under the bright lights of Croke Park with yet another twist as the retired Tom Sheridan has been replaced by Gary McConnell – another Kells man for whom Browne, an uncle, was an early mentor, before progressing to training and doubles partner, and now stands as the enemy between the debutant and the most prized achievement in doubles handball.
So, without doubt, this is storied and fierce rivalry that shows little sign of abating. If you’re lucky enough to be in attendance, get the popcorn out. We could be in for another classic.