Niall Scully replays Meath defeat twice as Dublin star insists All-Ireland dream still alive

The Irish Sun

01-05-2025

NO DUBLIN fan will want to relive the defeat to Meath that shattered their 14-year reign as Leinster champions – yet Niall Scully has already sifted through the wreckage twice.
In his 24th Leinster SFC appearance, the Templeogue Synge Street wing-forward finally tasted defeat on the provincial stage last Sunday.
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Dublin and Niall Scully suffered a shock defeat to Meath in the Leinster SFC semi-final
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But Scully is sure they can bounce back after the defeat and still realise their All-Ireland dream
By Monday morning, Scully was braving the footage of
And he went back for a second helping before attending yesterday's SuperValu's
He said: "You're just trying to look for learnings. I'd be more than happy to park it but I do think you have to address that and you can't just go on blindly and hope that you figure it out.'
Scully, 31, had no intention of turning a blind eye to the circumstances that led to his county's first defeat in Leinster since 2010.
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But when it comes to the death knell that many observers are now sounding for this Dublin team, the approach will be different.
He continued: "Ever since I've been involved, I've tried to avoid the external chat and the external conversation.
'We're going to regroup. We won't be focusing on what everybody else is going to say about us. Everybody will have their opinions but what matters most is what we're discussing with ourselves."
While Meath were a long shot to win in Portlaoise, the result was no fluke. Dublin's kickout, which has so often been a potent weapon, experienced a major malfunction as they lost 16 of their 28 restarts.
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In Scully's five previous Championship meetings with Meath, the Dubs' average winning margin was more than 14 points. Only once did the Royals manage to keep the final deficit below double digits.
But the five-time All-Ireland winner commented: "The scoreline might have said different but definitely over the last three or four years.
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"I think the games have been a lot tighter and, like that, the physicality of them. They were always a big, physical group so I definitely felt that at the weekend.
'And they obviously targeted our kickouts and got a good bit of joy out of it. I suppose if you're not winning your kickouts, you have less of the ball and less plays for us to attack.
"Meath are a good side. They came with a game-plan and they executed it. Down the last ten minutes, we had a lot of unforced turnovers and our execution was off."
The injury-hit Sky Blues were missing Seán Bugler, Eoin Murchan, Sean McMahon, Cian Murphy and Lee Gannon for the four-point loss in Portlaoise.
Still, Scully maintained: 'I don't think the injuries have been a fair reflection on why we lost. I have the belief that the squad that took to the pitch on the day is good enough to get over the line.
'One hundred per cent, injuries were there and they would have an impact, but I do believe that we had the squad to win that game.'
Scully also refuses to cite the venue as an excuse. For the first time in 30 years, Croke Park was not the setting for the Leinster semi-finals.
The 2020 All-Star said: 'I've played a fair few seasons and we've gone through the Super 8s and the new system where you're playing games outside Croke Park and for us and the supporters it's a huge experience.
'It's something that we kind of look forward to. I know my family love coming together and travelling to games like that. I don't see that as something that we buy into.'
While a ninth Leinster medal is no longer at stake for Scully in 2025, there is still an All-Ireland up for grabs. However, the knock-on effects of losing a provincial semi-final were felt in yesterday's Sam Maguire draw.
The Dubs, who were subsequently third seeds, will begin their campaign on May 17-18 away to the winners of Sunday's Connacht final between Galway and Mayo.
Their daunting group also contains Derry and the losers of the Ulster final clash of Donegal and Armagh.
ALL TO PLAY FOR
Speaking before their opponents were revealed, Scully said: "You're going to have to play these teams eventually.
"That's an exciting prospect. A provincial winner at home in their venue is quite exciting."
Scully refuses to view the Meath defeat as a fatal blow. And he draws parallels with 2023, when Dublin bounced back from the previous season's National League relegation to reclaim their All-Ireland title after a two-year absence from the summit.
He said: "It's more being disappointed in the performance, knowing how we could have played.
'We were hoping we'd be in a Leinster final and win the Leinster series. But we have to take it as it comes.
"We've dealt with blows previously and we've come from Division 2 and won the All-Ireland. We'd be hoping for something similar.
'The biggest thing is that we need to take what happened, learn from it and move on.
"We're good enough to be in the mix and if you get it right, we have a three or four week period to do that. Hopefully come the business end of the season we'll be there or thereabouts.'
Asked if he believes Dublin are capable of ending the season as All-Ireland champions, Scully insisted: 'Absolutely, yeah.'
*NIALL SCULLY was speaking at the announcement of a five-year extension to SuperValu's sponsorship of the All-Ireland SFC.