THE accurate free-taking of Gary Kirby steered Limerick to an unimpressive victory over a battling Meath side in yesterday's closely contested Division Two clash at Trim.

The Patrickswell sharp-shooter put his name on 1-10 of the winning total, with all but a point of this coming from frees. The shot for the goal, struck from around the halfway line, caught home keeper Mark Gannon napping after 11 minutes.

Limerick held a narrow lead for most for the match, with a five-point margin in the second quarter the most that separated the sides.

Meath fought back after the concession of early scores and had goals from Willie Donnelly and Mike Cole, the second coming from a brilliant shot from the right. The sides were level 2-4 to 1-7 at the break.

David Martin was the home team's only point scorer, with eight of his scores coming from frees. Although Cole managed to hit the net again in the closing stages, Meath lacked finishing power.

Corner-forward Damian Quigley netted Limerick's second goal 10 minutes from the end, and even though Cole's effort brought the arrears back to a minimum, Kirby, who was switched to centre back, added two late points.