Goals by Seán Bugler, Paul Mannion and Con O'Callaghan saw Dublin ease past Meath by 16 points in their disappointingly one-sided Leinster SFC quarter-final at Croke Park on Sunday afternoon.
In front of a crowd of just over 21,000, this contest was a far cry from the hostile encounters that would capture the imagination of the whole country a generation ago as Dublin ground out an expected victory without overly extending themselves.
The excitement was provided in advance of the contest around the return of both Stephen Cluxton and Michael Fitzsimons to the Dublin line-up but their experience counted for little initially as their opponents impressed from the outset.
It took just 30 seconds for Darragh Campion to open the scoring and Ronan Jones doubled the Meath advantage three minutes later when converting from a straightforward mark.
Dublin looked patient in attack, almost too patient at times, but they eventually opened their own account in the sixth minute, following a trademark curling effort from distance by Mannion.
The Dubs lacked cohesion at times but gradually showed signs of life up front, with Ciarán Kilkenny levelling matters in the 13th minute before Mannion edged them ahead from a free two minutes later.
While a Mathew Costello free levelled matters towards the end of the first quarter, Dublin were beginning to find holes in the Meath defence and from one such counter-attack, Bugler was afforded far too much time and space to crash a rising shot beyond the helpless Billy Hogan in the Meath goal.
When Mannion added a brace of scores in quick succession, the contest threatened to run away from the Royals but they narrowed their deficit to three points by the 25th minute, thanks to Eoghan Frayne and Jordan Morris.
Despite Cluxton’s radar being slightly off from restarts, Dublin still secured sufficient possession to restore their control as an O’Callaghan mark was added to by a Colm Basquel brace, leaving the holders 1-08 to 0-6 ahead by half-time.
A Niall Scully mark restored Dublin’s six-point buffer within a minute of the restart, with John Small also kicking a smart score off his left as Dublin seized ferociously of Hogan’s kick-outs.
The Royals were offered crumbs of encouragement at the opposite end, thanks to a brace of Morris points while James Conlon and Ciarán Caulfield also tagged on points as the third quarter evolved.
However, Dublin were equally adept at the opposite end as Kilkenny, Mannion and O’Callaghan availed of the increasingly generous amounts of space afforded to them, as James McCarthy received a strong ovation when introduced as a 50th minute substitute.
The contest was effectively settled in the 59th minute as Mannion swept home following a Ross McGarry pass across the Meath goal, with Mannion’s wellbeing a positive for Dessie Farrell to take from the afternoon.
Substitutes Cormac Costello and Paddy Small heaped further misery on the Meath defence late on, with O’Callaghan having the final word when firing across Hogan deep into added time to complete a comprehensive victory for the All-Ireland champions.
Dublin: Stephen Cluxton; Eoin Murchan, Michael Fitzsimons, Seán MacMahon; Seán Bugler (1-0), John Small (0-2), Cian Murphy (0-1); Tom Lahiff, Brian Howard; Ross McGarry, Colm Basquel (0-2), Ciarán Kilkenny (0-3); Paul Mannion (1-6, 0-3f), Con O’Callaghan (1-2, 0-1 mark), Niall Scully (0-1, mark).
Subs: James McCarthy for Basquel (50), Paddy Small (0-1) for Scully (52), Cormac Costello (0-1) for Mannion (61), Killian McGinnis for McGarry (61), Peadar Ó Cofaigh Byrne for J Small (65).
Meath: Billy Hogan (0-1, ’45); Harry O’Higgins, Donal Keogan, Adam O’Neill; Seán Coffey, Ross Ryan, Ciaran Caulfield (0-1); Ronan Jones (0-1, mark), Daithí McGowan; Mathew Costello (0-1, free), Darragh Campion (0-1), Cathal Hickey; Eoghan Frayne (0-3, 2 frees), James Conlon (0-1), Jordan Morris (0-3).
Subs: Jack O’Connor for Campion (half-time), Cian McBride for McGowan (45), Keith Curtis for Morris (58), Ruairí Kinsella for Ryan (58), Aaron Lynch for Conlon (61).
Referee: Thomas Murphy (Galway).
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