1999 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final

{{Infobox football match

| title = 1999 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final

| image =

| event = 1999 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

| team1 = {{GG|Meath|football}}

| team1association = 40px

| team1score = 1–11
(14)

| team2 = {{GG|Cork|football}}

| team2association = 40px

| team2score = 1–8
(11)

| details =

| date = 26 September 1999

| stadium = Croke Park

| city = Dublin

| man_of_the_match1a = Mark O'Reilly{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.ie/sport/brilliant-oreilly-keeps-the-proud-summerhill-link-alive-26139624.html|title=Brilliant O'Reilly keeps the proud Summerhill link alive|date=27 September 1999|work=Irish Independent|accessdate=17 January 2023}}

| referee = Mick Curley (Galway){{cite news|url=https://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-football/curley-to-join-referee-exodus-25998104.html|title=Curley to join referee exodus|work=Irish Independent|first=Colm|last=Keys|date=4 February 2005}}

| attendance = 63,276

| weather = Dry

| previous = 1998

| next = 2000

}}

The 1999 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final was the 112th All-Ireland Final and the deciding match of the 1999 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, an inter-county Gaelic football tournament for the top teams in Ireland. Meath, captained by Graham Geraghty, defeated Cork to claim the last All-Ireland SFC title of the Millennium.{{cite news|first1=Jim|last1=O'Sullivan|first2=Charlie|last2=Mulqueen|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_324.htm|title=Masterful Meath in seventh heaven|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

This was the last All-Ireland SFC final to be held with the old Hogan Stand in place at Croke Park.{{cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/historic-final-will-be-hogan-s-last-stand-1.231185|title=Historic final will be Hogan's last stand|work=The Irish Times|first=Ian|last=O'Riordan|date=25 September 1999}}

Pre-match

Meath had "unquestionably" played more key games at Croke Park in the 1990s than any other Leinster county.{{cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_319.htm|title=Boylan sees his battling quarrymasters dig out victory|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Cork's Seán Óg Ó hAilpín went into the match aiming to emulate Teddy McCarthy's achievement of winning two senior All-Ireland championship medals in the same season.{{cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_316.htm|title=Ó hAilpín keeps it in perspective|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Match

=Summary=

Meath won by three points, recovering from the double blow of a penalty miss and the concession of a spectacular Joe Kavanagh goal at the start of the second half to eventually take control and win in style.{{cite news|first=Jim |last=O'Sullivan |url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_333.htm |title=Meath's crowning glory |newspaper=Irish Examiner |year=1999 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629125411/http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_333.htm |archive-date=2011-06-29 }} It was Trevor Giles that missed the penalty.{{cite news|first=Brendan|last=Mooney|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_306.htm|title=Penalty miss redeemed by crucial points|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Kevin O'Dwyer, in the Cork goal, saved the penalty which was low to his left.{{cite news|first=Brendan|last=Larkin|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_314.htm|title=Defeat is so hard to bear for O'Dwyer|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} If Giles had scored, Meath would have been two goals clear—Cork counterattacked, scored a point, then a goal.{{cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_325.htm|title=Boylan sorcery conjures up more Meath magic|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Cork had almost 60% of the possession and were in control of the game for most of the first half, yet still lost.{{cite news|first=Tony|last=Davis|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_305.htm|title=Rebels forward line not on form|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The average age of the Cork team was just over 23.{{cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_313.htm|title=Counihan looks ahead to next year but finds defeat difficult|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Trevor Giles scored a crucial 45 eleven minutes from the end; the score put Meath one point ahead.{{cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_315.htm|title=Royals revelled in tight finish|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Graham Geraghty captained Meath to victory and raised the Sam Maguire Cup aloft.{{cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_317.htm|title=Captain overcome with emotion as he places daughter in Cup|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The manager of the Meath team that day was Seán Boylan.{{cite news|first=Mark|last=Gallagher|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_318.htm|title=High King of Tara celebrates success|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Giles was viewed as "dictating the shape of the large picture like a director of epic movies."{{cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_326.htm|title=Character sees Meath defy destiny and despair|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The performance of Meath's Mark O'Reilly was also praised.{{cite news|first=Brendan |last=Mooney |url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_328.htm |title=O'Reilly joins list of great Meath wing backs |newspaper=Irish Examiner |year=1999 }}{{dead link|date=June 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

"Some of the widest wides ever seen in Croke Park this century" occurred during the game.{{cite news|first=Cormac|last=McConnell|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_323.htm|title=High King of Tara celebrates success|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

=Details=

{{football box

|date = 26 September 1999
Final

|team1 = {{GG|Meath|football}}

|score = 1–11 - 1–8

|team2 = {{GG|Cork|football}}

|goals1 = T. Giles 0–4, O. Murphy 1–0, E. Kelly, G. Geraghty 0–3 each, D. Curtis 0–1

|goals2 = P. Clifford 0–5, J. Kavanagh 1–1, Mark O'Sullivan, P. O'Mahony 0–1 each

|stadium = Croke Park, Dublin

|attendance= 63,226

| referee= Mick Curley (Galway)

| report= [https://web.archive.org/web/20110629125411/http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_333.htm Report]

|}}

{{MOS|section|date=January 2025|reason=the teams not being laid out as, for instance, at 2024 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final#Details, with full names visible, substitutes in numerical order and 'subon'/'suboff' templates included}}

==Meath==

;Subs

: R. Kealy for Nestor

: B. Callaghan for Traynor

: T. Dowd for Kelly

;Manager

: S. Boylan

==Cork==

;Subs used

: 20 F. Murray for ?

: 19 F. Collins for ?

: 17 M. O'Donovan for ?

;Subs not used

: 16 A. Quirke

: 18 M. O'Connor

: 21 B. J. O'Sullivan

: 22 B. Walsh

: 23 A. Dorgan

: 24 J. Miskella

;Manager

: L. Tompkins

Post-match

Cork player Joe Kavanagh said it was as bad as the 1993 defeat.{{cite news|first=Brendan|last=Larkin|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_327.htm|title=Gutted Kavanagh says they simply under-achieved|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Meath's second All-Ireland football title of the decade following their success in 1996, they were joint "team of the decade" for the 1990s with Down who won two titles in 1991 and 1994.{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-football/kerry-on-honour-roll-1885579.html|title=Kerry on honour roll|newspaper=Irish Independent|publisher=Independent News & Media|date=14 September 2009|access-date=14 September 2009}} Meath footballer Cormac Murphy, who afterwards expressed his relief that he had not retired before the game, said "I don't know. I don't think this achievement will make us team of the nineties. You have Down, you have Cork again, there have been a lot of good teams. Ask me again this time next year."{{cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/1999/09/27/shead_312.htm|title=Murphy so glad he didn't retire|newspaper=Irish Examiner|year=1999}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

References

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, 1999

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Finals

Category:All-Ireland Senior Football Championship finals

Category:GAA finals at Croke Park

Category:Cork county football team matches

Category:Meath county football team matches