Brennan not worried by absence of Dublin and Meath in SFC final

THE absence of Dublin and Meath from the Bank of Ireland Leinster SFC decider on July 20 may not necessarily result in the provincial council taking a financial hit.

However, chairman Nicky Brennan conceded yesterday that it was improbable that the attendance at the Laois/Kildare final would reach the level of last season's Dublin/Kildare game. That produced a record crowd of 78,003 and gate receipts of almost €1.35m, which was twice the return for the hurling final.

While acknowledging the importance of finance to the Council in running its affairs, Nicky Brennan argues that the boost to the image of the championship by the twin successes of Kildare and Laois at the weekend was of much greater significance.