NAME: Graham Geraghty DATE OF BIRTH: 17/5/73 HEIGHT: 6ft WEIGHT: 12st 7lbs CLUB: Seneschalstown COUNTY: Meath HONOURS: Under 12 Championship, Under 17 League, Minor - Leinster and All-Ireland medals, Under 21 Leinster Championship, Meath Senior League medal INTER-COUNTY DEBUT: 1988 Under 16, 1990 with minors and senior debut in October 1991 TOUGHEST OPPONENT: Benny Reddy, Kells; Anthony Tohill, Derry FAVOURITE GROUNDS: Croke Park SPORTING AMBITION: To win an All-Ireland senior medal BOYHOOD HERO: Colm O'Rourke, Jack O'Shea, Eoin Liston FAVOURITE PLAYER: Colm O'Rourke DO YOU PLAY ANY OTHER SPORTS? Golf, soccer WAYS OF IMPROVING THE GAME: Making the game faster and adopting some of the Aussie Rules BEST GAME SEEN: Meath and Dublin saga in 1991 HOPES FOR 1992: Under 21 championship followed by a senior championship medal LAST SUNDAY YOUR CLUB SENESCHALSTOWN LOST TO SKRYNE IN THE MEATH SENIOR FINAL. TELL US ABOUT YOUR CLUB: Seneschalstown is a club with immense talent, with a lot of young players coming up through the ranks. It's very hard to believe they haven't won a championship since 1972 YOUR FATHER GER, IS STILL PLAYING CLUB FOOTBALL: No, he finished playing football in 1989 and decided to hang up the boots. I suppose he wanted to go out on a winning stroke after winning the club league YOU ARE THE ONLY BOY IN THE GERAGHTY HOUSEHOLD, SO OBVIOUSLY THE FATHER HAD A BIG INFLUENCE ON YOUR CAREER: Yes, he's always there dishing out advice before matches. He has been a big influence on my football career and was always there for me ALSO PAUL KENNY, COACH OF THE VICTORIOUS MEATH MINOR TEAM OF 1990: Yes, Paul also was a big influence as well, he guided me over the last two years and pointed me in the right directions. I owe a lot to Paul and I think we met half way by winning the minor All-Ireland in 1990 COLM COYLE AND MATTIE MCCABE ALSO PLAY WITH SENESCHALSTOWN: Colm and Mattie have helped me all the way, giving me advice when I needed it. It's great to have players with so much talent to play alongside in club as well as county YOU STARTED PLAYING SENIOR CLUB FOOTBALL AT A VERY EARLY AGE: I started playing in '89 at 16. The selectors were very reluctant to play me at first. Maybe it will affect me in years to come, playing competitive football too early, but it got me onto the minor team and from there onto the Meath senior team YOU STAND OUT AT CLUB LEVEL, YOUR BLOND HAIR, A YOUNGSTER MIXING IT WITH PLAYERS ON THE ROYAL COUNTY CLUB SCENE FOR MANY YEARS. DO YOU COME IN FOR SOME ROUGH TREATMENT? Sometimes, but it's not as bad as everybody thinks. You might get the odd fellow who wants to do nothing else only rough you up. But most players just get on with the game YOU WERE A STAR FOR MEATH IN LAST WINTER'S NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE. WERE YOU SURPRISED AT HOW EASY YOU MADE THE TRANSITION FROM MINOR TO SENIOR? AFTER ALL, YOU WERE STILL A MINOR IN 1991: Yes, the games were obviously a lot faster and players were a lot better, but with players with the class of Robbie O'Malley, Mick Lyons, Donal Smith and Terry Ferguson behind you, it made things a lot easier THEN YOU WERE RATHER SENSATIONALLY NOT PICKED FOR THE FIRST ROUND OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP, THE RETURNED VETERAN KEVIN FOLEY GETTING THE NOD. WERE YOU DISAPPOINTED? Yes, I was disappointed because I was playing all year and to be dropped for the first round was a big blow. Although I could see it coming because my standard dropped a gear in the last National League game against Derry TO DATE THE MEATH SELECTORS HAVE EMPLOYED YOU AS A WING BACK. YOU WOULD PROBABLY BE MORE SUITED AS A MIDFIELDER. WOULD YOU PREFER TO PLAY IN THE MIDDLE? In time yes, but at the moment I'm happy to be on the panel. I've always liked going forward and playing wing back you can't really go forward too often because you have to cover your opponent as well THE OLDER BACKS LIKE LYONS, O'MALLEY, FERGUSON. THEY OBVIOUSLY HELPED YOU ALONG IN THOSE EARLY GAMES LAST AUTUMN: Yes, playing with these players was a big help. They were always there behind you, keeping you in line and on your toes. They have been a great help YOUR IMPRESSION OF SEAN BOYLAN: I have great respect for Sean Boylan. He has helped me a lot this ear. He has done so much for Meath football in the last ten years. Everybody has to stand and admire his achievements AND HIS SELECTORS PAT REYNOLDS AND TONY BRENNAN: With Sean, they have helped Meath to two All-Irelands, National League titles, Leinsters and Centenary Cup. They have done Meath football proud, giving players like Martin O'Connell, Brian Stafford, Tommy Dowd etc. their chance and also myself MEATH WILL PROBABLY REST OR DROP A NUMBER OF OLD HANDS FOR THE FORTHCOMING NATIONAL FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES. CAN THE ROYAL COUNTY MAKE AN IMPRESSION THIS WINTER? I think so. Meath have so many young players standing in line, just waiting for a chance that they would be able to stand up to any county in the country at National League level. The championship is a different story MEATH HAVE QUITE A NUMBER OF GOOD YOUNG PLAYERS EMERGING. WHO WOULD YOU SEE MAKING A BIG NAME FOR THEMSELVES? Enda McManus, also Trevor Giles and John Brady, Peter Sullivan and all minors this year. I can see these players coming up through the ranks ANOTHER MEATH-DUBLIN CHAMPIONSHIP BATTLE NEXT SUMMER? I hope so Taken from Hogan Stand magazine 2nd October 1992 Vol 2 No 75 Tweet

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