Cork and Meath have come a long way since last league meeting 13 months ago

A top of the table clash on Leeside this weekend in a mouthwatering Allianz Division 2 Football League encounter.

Both Cork and Meath come into their clash with three wins from their first three games, which tees up this latest battle between the counties very nicely indeed.

Páirc Uí Rinn is the venue on Sunday with throw-in at 2pm with SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh closed for a short period due to maintenance on the pitch. 

The smaller compact ground should add to the occasion at the weekend with a large crowd expected.

For Cork, they will know this is another must win game if they want to keep their promotion push firmly alive especially given the difficulty of the remaining three league matches. 

John Cleary’s side take on Derry away, Kildare at home and Tyrone away after this upcoming game.

The Rebels will have fond memories of the last time they played competitively in Páirc Uí Rinn. It was back in June 2024 when they defeated Donegal in the All-Ireland series.

Cork do like playing at the Boreenmanna Road venue as they look to pick up another league win against Meath.

Both sides, it must be said, have come a long way since they clashed in the first game of the league last year. They did meet in the All-Ireland series last summer on a day when the Royal County won, but it’s a better barometer when you look at the previous league fixture between the counties.

Cork won 2-19 to 0-21 and if we are being honest, Meath were certainly an unknown package given they were under new management led by Robbie Brennan and also the new rules were just in place.

Both sides would eventually miss out on promotion, but Meath would go on and reach the All-Ireland semi-final stage as the Leesiders bowed out at the All-Ireland preliminary quarter-final juncture.

Both teams' trajectory though has been there for everyone to see since the start of last year. It has continued into 2026 and Sunday’s encounter represents a big chance for one of the teams to win and take a giant step towards potentially promotion to Division 1.

Below are the scorers and teams from Cork’s victory over Meath in January 2025.

Scorers for Cork: M Cronin 0-7 (5 f, 1 2pt f), C Óg Jones 1-4, B O’Driscoll 0-6 (1 2pt f, 1 f), M Taylor 1-0, C O’Mahony, P Walsh 0-1 each.

Meath: M Costello 0-10 (5 f, 1 2pt f), J Morris 0-4, S Walsh, E Harkin 0-2 each, J Flynn, E Frayne, B Hogan 0-1 each.

CORK: M A Martin; M Shanley, D O’Mahony (captain), N Lordan; S Powter, R Maguire, M Taylor; S Walsh, C O’Callaghan; P Walsh, E McSweeney, B O’Driscoll; M Cronin, C Óg Jones, S McDonnell.

Subs: P Doyle for M A Martin (inj), C O’Mahony for S McDonnell (both 52), D Cashman for S Powter (61), E Desmond for S Walsh (65), T Walsh for E McSweeney (71).

MEATH: B Hogan; S Lavin, A O’Neill, E Harkin; S Coffey, D Keogan, C Caulfield; J Flynn, B Menton; K Curtis, S Walsh, J Kinlough; J Morris, M Costello, E Frayne (captain).

Subs: B O’Halloran for A O’Neill (50), C Duke for K Curtis (54), J Conlon for S Walsh (55), R Jones for E Frayne, S Rafferty for C Caulfield (both 60).

Referee: Derek O’Mahoney (Tipperary).