NOT for the first time, Meath showed an in built tenacity and an undeniable ability yesterday. They made the utmost use of limited opportunities to carve out victory against unfortunate Mayo.

Mayo had first advantage of a strong wind and with this in mind they must have known that a six or seven point half time lead was imperative. I was surprised early on when Mayo left Ray Dempsey and Anthony Finnerty inside to spearhead a two man front line. Perhaps John Casey's outfield commission was adopted to restore his confidence after an ineffective performance two weeks ago.

Nonetheless, Mayo's insistence on delivering high, speculative balls forward did not bear much fruit the first day and yesterday's repetition played into the grateful hands of Mark O'Reilly and Martin O'Connell. The result was that Mayo fell into the trap of relying almost exclusively for scores on James Horan from play and Maurice Sheridan from frees.

The infamous flare up had a major outcome on the destination of the title. Strictly speaking any two of 20 players from either side could have been sent to the line. Maybe Liam McHale stood out as one of the main culprits because of his size. Whatever, there can be little doubt that Meath would have accepted Colm Coyle for McHale as a reasonable trade.

As regards referee Pat McEnaney, I believe his firm decision was the correct one as the scuffle was prolonged and quite vicious. This modern day philosophy of `one in, all in' is designed to protect the guilty parties and this cannot be a good example to youngsters watching at home or from the stands. Anyway, McEnaney ran the risk of losing control if such action went unchecked.

Against the elements, Meath were tenacious around the middle, swiping the breaking ball, but they failed to translate possession into points, with Kenneth Mortimer and Kevin Cahill forming an impassible barrier.

The introduction of PJ Loftus for Dempsey presented O'Connell with a different type of challenge and the St Michael's warrior was caught for pace when the Loftus goal gave Mayo the cushion they thought they would have at the break. But Mortimer's tug of Dowd's jersey was brilliantly punished by Trevor Giles' unstoppable penalty. This cut Mayo's lead from seven points to a very manageable four. Meath were within striking distance.

In comparison to Mayo's sluggish inside forward line, Tommy Dowd and Brendan Reilly had real pace if not much possession. Admittedly, Barry Callaghan looked decidedly unfit and should have been removed long before the 66th minute.

The game looked over when two quick second half points put Meath into Mayo's slipstream. However, this was when Mayo's fighting spirit came to the surface. Against all the odds, one had to admire their work rate and support play. But, for all that, their regular inability to execute the final pass or take their points from the 25 to 30 yard range must have been demoralising. The epitome of this overall trend was Colin McManamon. He secured more possession than any player has ever done in an All Ireland final, but, sadly, inaccurate deliveries spoiled all his hard graft, time and time again. Mayo badly needed a finisher and this would probably have necessitated Casey's move inside. This switch never came.

In contrast to McManamon, Trevor Giles made intelligent use of far less possession and this was generally the case throughout the field with Meath's direct style and economical conversion of chances proving crucial.

The quick thinking of Graham Geraghty gave Dowd the chance to administer a decisive body blow to Mayo with the all important goal.

Looking at the big picture, this defeat will hurt Mayo in the coming months. On both days, they were so close to an All Ireland, and while it will be difficult for them to accept such heartache they should realise that this experience will stand to them. They are very close to having what it needs to go all the way.

For their part, it is an awesome achievement for this young Meath squad to reach Gaelic football's summit so quickly. There is tremendous potential to improve even on this in the years ahead. That is not to forget the immense contribution of players like Martin O'Connell, whose leadership held the backs together when, at times, they were stretched to the limit yesterday.

Darren Fay has impressed me as the finest full back to emerge in the 90s, closely followed by Kevin Cahill. Indeed, Mark O'Reilly and Paddy Reynolds are other youngsters to characterise a certain `Meathness', if you will, and by that I mean an innate steely temperament, and an ability to see the light at the end of their tunnel vision.