Down 0-10 Meath 2-11
Meath hit two goals in the final quarter to boost their promotion hopes with a 2-11 to 0-10 Allianz Football League Division 2 victory over Down at Páirc Esler.
Royals sub Bryan Menton hit 1-02 in the second half, including a crucial 56th minute goal, with Padraic Harnan adding a second goal two minutes from the end.
Meath, who led by 0-06 to 0-04 at half-time, were deserving winners as Down’s poor shooting cost them automatic promotion.
A bigger, stronger, more physical Meath side adapted better to the wet conditions, while Down - perhaps affected by all the promotion talk leading up to the game - fell flat.
Despite creating numerous point-scoring opportunities in the first half they only managed four points, with many shots dropping wide or short.
Jim McCorry's side will have to wait until next week's last home game against Laois to try and secure Division 1 status, but with the chasing pack catching up, they will need a vastly improved display to clinch promotion.
Meath led for almost the entire game and were composed throughout.
Their subs made a big impact and they now host Cavan in their final game with a very live chance of gaining promotion.
The visitors led by 0-06 to 0-04 at the end of a first half memorable only for mediocre shooting and sloppy passing.
Kevin McKernan's excellent long-range point just before the break was the first scored by any of the Down forwards, who were off-target in the opening period.
Meath established a 0-04 to 0-01 lead after ten minutes. Paul Devlin's early free was followed by scores from Padraic Harnan, Eamon Wallace and two Mark O'Sullivan frees.
Mark Poland had the best goal chance of the first half but his low shot was blocked by O'Rourke in the 16th minute.
Conor Gillespie, a late replacement for Bryan Menton in the Meath team, showed off his fielding skills by winning a number of kick-outs, but poor passing and wasteful shooting meant that primary possession wasn't converted into enough scores.
Gillespie and Shane O'Rourke scored two quality points for the visitors, Gillespie's a fine 40-metre effort from near the sideline, while Down had to wait until the 33rd minute for a point from play.
Shane O'Rourke's spectacular catch in the square counted for nothing as he failed to win the free when he hit the deck and the Mourne men broke down the field, with defender Darragh O'Hanlon's shot crashing off the crossbar and over for the home side's first score from open play.
The driving rain made playing conditions difficult and after a mediocre enough first half, and only two points separating them, both teams must have felt they could do a whole lot better.
The third quarter was just as scrappy, with an O'Sullivan free and Paddy O'Rourke '45 stretching Meath's lead to 0-08 to 0-04 before McKernan grabbed his second point of the game.
Mark Poland picked up a black card for pulling down Grahan Reilly, Bryan Power following for Meath later on.
Points from play were a rarity, yet Down had closed to within a point, trailing 0-08 to 0-07, when Menton hit the back of the net for Meath in the 56th minute.
Three Meath subs combined for the goal. Stephen Bray's first touch was a pass to Newman, who fed Menton, and his low, confident strike beat Stephen Kane.
Meath's replacements had a big impact with Joseph Wallace also fisting over to put the Royals 1-10 to 0-08 ahead, the first time they had a five-point cushion.
Down sub Caolan Mooney came up with an instant response, but it was only temporary relief to Meath's running game, with Menton fisting over another point.
Meath clinched the points with Padraic Harnan's palmed goal in the 68th minute after Down failed to clear the danger to cap off a miserable evening for the Mourne men.
Scorers for Down – P Devlin 0-3 (2f), K McKernan 0-2, D O'Hare 0-2 (2f), J Johnston 0-1, C Mooney 0-1, D O'Hanlon 0-1
Scorers for Meath – B Menton 1-2, P Harnan 1-1, M O'Sullivan 0-3 (3f), P O'Rourke 0-1 (a '45') S O'Rourke 0-1, C Gillespie 0-1, E Wallace 0-1, J Wallace 0-1
Down: S Kane; G Collins, L Howard, D Turley; P Devlin, D O'Hanlon, C Maginn; P Turley, R Mallon; C McGovern, K McKernan, M Poland; C Laverty, A McConville, D O'Hare
Subs: R Johnston for Maginn (44), C Mooney (0-1) for McConville (44), J Johnston (0-1) for Poland (BC, 47), B McArdle for P Turley (59)
Meath: P O'Rourke; D Tobin, C Magill, D Keogan; M Burke, K Reilly, B Power; C Gillespie, A Flanagan; G Reilly, P Harnan, J McEntee; E Wallace, S O'Rourke, M O'Sullivan
Subs: B Menton for K Reilly (HT), M Newman for S O'Rourke (HT), D Dalton for Power (BC, 54), S Bray for Wallace (55), J Wallace for O'Sullivan (62), S Tobin for Gillespie (70)
Referee: Barry Cassidy (Derry)
