Vincent Foley gave distinguished service to both Duleek and Meath. He speaks candidly about his love for the GAA, the current state of the game and New York. It took a replay to separate the sides and it was Duleek who narrowly prevailed in the Intermediate championship this year, beating Syddan by a point. Goals from Peter Curran and James Devereaux helped the team to a 2-7 to 2-6 victory. Duleek's narrow win will have delighted former player, Vincent Foley. Foley has pleasant memories of his playing days with the club. During his time, he won an Intermediate title and played on four Meath teams which won the Leinster title. He played at a time when Meath were among the crème de la crème in Gaelic football. His career may be long finished but the Dublin-based barrister speaks with immense enthusiasm for Gaelic football. He talks of his time involved with Duleek, his Intermediate title win, the couple of All-Irelands lost with Meath. His playing career, while in UCD, also involved a summer in New York, where he played as a student. A glorious career then, for a player who rates Jack Quinn (Kilbride) and Bertie Cunningham (Ballivor) as the best players he played alongside. Duleek was the only club with which he played from the age of 12 until he retired. In 1966 they won the Intermediate championship. In the same year Meath won the Leinster football championship so it proved a double success for himself and club player Oliver Shanley. Foley played on four Leinster winning teams - 1964, 1966, 1967 and 1970. He was also on the All-Ireland final winning team which beat Galway in 1966 and Kerry in the first seventy-minute football final in 1970, when he marked Mick O'Connell. (whose son now practises at the bar with Foley). Leinster had some excellent fielders at the time. Meath never had an easy time with stiff competition amongst the province's best fielders. "It was a great time to play. Westmeath had players like Mick Carley, Kildare had Jack Donnelly, Offaly had Willie Bryan. We'd never have an easy day as there were a glut of good midfielders around at the time. But it was a great time to play for Meath. We only had one player under six feet, the 'Red' Collier and he was stronger than the rest," he says. Although his playing days centred primarily on the Duleek and Meath teams, he did get the opportunity to venture further afield. Meath had no team in New York at the time and so he played with Donegal. Playing in temperatures of 100 degrees and on hard ground might not be every player's cup of tea. And he says, there was, "murder on the field". But he had a job on a building site, which made him "a rich student" and Donegal won the New York championship for the first time when he played. Gaelic football has developed significantly since his own playing days and looking from the sidelines there are a few things which he would like to see changed. Rather than see a handpassing game, he is in favour of more kicking, believing in the long accurate kick. A "clearly-defined tackle" is also something he would like to see introduced. He is keen on the heavy shoulder-to-shoulder charges; his Meath team being one that was capable of knocking players over. That said, he has high regard for today's players, praising the nature of Gaelic games. "I have lots of admiration for fit and enthusiastic players; it's as good as ever and no games in the world are as good at that level as these amateur games," he says. Training in his playing days may have been tough but he acknowledges the fact that players are extremely committed nowadays. He is impressed too, that despite the immense dedication involved, the players are able to hold down full-time jobs outside their chosen sport. "We thought it was (tough when we played) but when I look at old footage I think they (modern players) are fitter. Diet is emphasised by players now and they are very disciplined. It's wonderful that these men are able to go to work every day. "And there is none of that awful tabloid stuff that goes on in English soccer. There is nobody annoying you and you can lead a normal life," he says. Based in the law library of the four courts, his job in the Louth/Meath/Kildare/Dublin eastern circuit court involves dealing with things such as serious injury claims, and amputees. Criminal law was previously his area of work but he is no longer involved in that. The practice has given him immense pleasure over the years though the carnage on Irish roads and accidents in the workplace worry him. "I am practising 25 years and I love it. There is never a dull moment. It's all very personal cases. There is still terrible slaughter on the roads with 600 deaths a year and another 100 due to industry and farming accidents. I encounter that a lot in my work and it is very traumatic for the families involved. It brings a lot of hardship to them," he said. He encounters some of his former team-mates from time to time and has, on occasion, helped them to sort out problems. "I do see them very often (socially). Largely they keep out of trouble though I do give a helping hand when needed!" he said. Though he was never involved in coaching, he has now been appointed to the Disputes Resolution Authority and believes that this can help to sort out disagreements whenever they crop up. The GAA remains an organisation he loves and he would do anything to help it. He is glad that the authority is there to help believing that the association can deal with problems from within rather than being dependent on the courts. "I think when disputes crop up in various areas that all can be sorted out without the necessity of going to court. I think it's a good thing in so far as possible we can sort it out ourselves," he said. Eamonn Barry's tenure as Meath manager may be in his infancy but, Foley says, Barry will be able to bring something to the job. Foley is optimistic about the players coming up through the ranks and he believes that the team can become a force with which to be reckoned in Leinster. Whether they can match the exploits of his playing days remains to be seen. Tweet

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