Meath end 29-year wait with thrilling minor final win

The scores were tied for the eighth time before Shaun Leonard's 64th-minute winning point

Electric Ireland GAA All-Ireland Minor Football Championship Final, Croke Park, Dublin 28/8/2021

All-Ireland MFC Final: Meath 1-12 Tyrone 1-11

Meath's near 30-year wait for Electric Ireland All-Ireland minor football title success is finally over and they have gamebreaker Shaun Leonard to thank for it.

A thrilling, if error laden, finale hinged on Leonard's 64th minute winning point from the right wing into the Hill 16 End at Croke Park, securing the county's first title at the minor grade since 1992.

The scores were tied for the eighth time at 1-11 apiece when Conor Ennis burst out of defence and while he hopped the ball twice in succession, it wasn't spotted and wing-forward Leonard was eventually played in for the historic winner.

Electric Ireland GAA All-Ireland Minor Football Championship Final, Croke Park, Dublin 28/8/2021

Tyrone will kick themselves because they booted 14 wides on the day and four in a row at one stage late on which ultimately cost them.

Even after Leonard kicked that point to put Meath ahead, Tyrone had a chance to equalise and to send the game to extra-time but substitute Conor Owens kicked wide from a free about 25 metres out.

Oisin O Murchu, a week after being sent off in the semi-final win over Sligo, top-scored for Meath with 1-2 while Ennis, full-back and captain Liam Kelly, Tomas Corbett and Jack Kinlough were all impressive too.

Tyrone were slight favourites after waltzing through the Ulster championship and then crushing Cork by 14 points in the All-Ireland semi-finals last Saturday.

They started brightly and an eighth-minute goal from captain Cormac Devlin helped them to lead by 1-3 to 0-2.

Meath were back level by the first water break at 1-4 apiece thanks largely to O Murchu's well taken goal 13th minute goal which came from a Tyrone kick-out that was turned over.

Turnovers and errors were a feature of the game and Meath went in with a narrow half-time lead, 1-7 to 1-6.

They increased that lead to three at the end of a scrappy third quarter though Tyrone fought back to level terms yet again with points from Ruairi McHugh, Ronan Cassidy and Conor Owens.

28 August 2021; Tomas Corbett of Meath in action against Noah Grimes of Tyrone during the Electric Ireland GAA Football All-Ireland Minor Championship Final match between Meath and Tyrone at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile

Gerard Donnelly's side should have kicked on and taken the lead but wides cost them and Leonard took full advantage for Meath, holding his nerve and kicking a historic winner.

Meath scorers: O O Murchu (1-2); Hughie Corcoran (0-3, 1 free); Shaun Leonard & Oisin McDermott (2 45) (0-2 each); Jack Kinlough, Conor McWeeney & Sean Emmanuel (0-1 each).

Tyrone scorers: Cormac Devlin (1-1); Ronan Cassidy (0-3, 2 frees); Eoin McElholm, Ruairi McHugh & Conor Owens (2 frees) (0-2 each); Hugh Cunningham (0-1, 1 free).

Meath: O McDermott; C Ennis, T Corbett, L Kelly; S O'Hare, J O'Regan, K Smyth; P Wilson, J Kinlough; S Leonard, S Emmanuel, C McWeeney; C Finlay, O O Murchu, H Corcoran.

Subs: A Moore for McWeeney 53; J Foley for Corcoran 58; B O'Halloran for Kelly 61.

Tyrone: N Robinson; M Mallon, C Kelly, M Rafferty; H Cunningham, R Fox, S O'Hare; R Donnelly, R McHugh; G Potter, R Strain, P McCann; R Cassidy, C Devlin, E McElholm.

Subs: C Owens for Potter h/t; J Martin for Donnelly 32-f/t, blood; N Grimes for McCann 47; B Hampsey for McHugh 57-59, blood; R Molloy for Cunningham 57.

Ref: D O'Mahoney (Tipperary).