Tyrone are hot favourites but Harte wary of ‘lethal’ Meath
MICKEY HARTE has claimed that Meath’s first-half display against Westmeath was more ‘lethal’ than All-Ireland favourites Dublin at their best. Harte’s Tyrone team are hot favourites to see off the Royals in tomorrow’s headline Round 2 football qualifier clash in Omagh, with their 4/9 odds hardened by Meath’s lack of tactical nous when ceding a 10-point lead to Westmeath. Also, the Royals’ dedication to a traditional attack-based gameplan leaves them vulnerable against Tyrone’s well-manned defence. But Harte has claimed that the assumption Meath are like a helpless fly about to get caught in a Tyrone web does not marry with the reality of how Mick O’Dowd’s team played against Westmeath for 40 minutes. ‘In the first half against Westmeath I think that there are very few teams that would have dealt with them, trying to defend their long passes and quick ball into the areas for their fast forwards to reach inside,’ said the Tyrone manager. ‘They were as lethal looking as Dublin at their best. They have serious pace and they kick the ball a lot to get the ball inside quickly. ‘You can only go with what you see, and they are a traditional side but they do play a sweeper and they have fast inside forwards. ‘If you dropped in at half-time in that game, you would not have anticipated how the game would have worked out. ‘Meath were pretty awesome in the first half and even the 2-10 to 1-3 situation they found themselves in did not even do justice to how superior they were. It is a very tough challenge for us,’ warned Harte. It is one, though, which his team have overcome as recently as 2013, when Tyrone reached the semifinal, losing to Mayo. Plus they can take heart from a qualifer record that reveals two All-Ireland titles and five quarterfinals out of eight attempts. A narrow opening-round defeat by Donegal has seen pundits hail Tyrone as the most likely threat coming from the qualifiers, while, closer to home, it has led some observers to believe that this is a better team than the team of two years ago. ‘That is very subjective,’ argued Harte. ‘If we can beat Meath on Saturday then you would be in a better position to say that but last time they went onto reach the All-Ireland semi-final and, but for getting rough enough justice, would have gone onto the final. But that’s another story. ‘The potential is there to be better now because of the age profile and the development of those players so there is potential to go ahead of that team,’ he added. ‘But, ultimately, it will come down to Championship results. That is how you measure where you are at.’ Meanwhile, Harte is dismissive of the suggestion that the provincial championships are in crisis amid accusations of a lack of competitiveness. Currently Dublin are expected to win a 10th Leinster in 11 years this weekend against Westmeath, while Mayo are portrayed as shoo-ins for a fifth Connacht title ina-row against Sligo. However, Harte countered: ‘That is not very different to the way it has always been. If you go back to the 70s, Dublin and Kerry were there and everyone else was an also-ran in Ulster and Connacht.’ ‘And, if Kerry or Dublin met an Ulster or Connacht team in the semi-final it was like a day off because they knew they were in the final. ‘People talk about the demise of football and how it has been narrowed down. But you have more teams now capable of challenging than there used to be, yet you have this talk that the strong are getting stronger and the weak weaker. ‘That is not true. It is life as it always has been and I think there is more chance now pf people making the top table than there used to be,’ said Harte.