Eoin McEvoy fists it over to cut the gap to just a point.

Frantic start at Celtic Park as things begin to settle after 15 minutes played, with Meath keeping possession inside the Derry half.

Eoghan Frayne goes for it, but it’s another wide for the Royals.

All-Ireland champions Kerry defeat Kildare 3-22 to 0-17 in Round 2B to keep their defence of the Sam Maguire alive.

Jack Flynn tries his luck from outside the arc but it forces a save from Shea McGuckin, with the rebound going behind for a 45.

From the resulting set-piece, Sean Brennan steps up for Meath but slips at the crucial moment and sends his effort wide, spurning a chance to add to the Royals’ lead.

Lachlan Murray gets his first of the evening to reduce the deficit to two points.

The late change pays immediate dividends for Meath as Jack Flynn converts a beautiful two-point effort from play.

Ciaran Meenagh's side immediately follow up with a point from Shane McGuigan.

The Oak Leafers reduce the deficit as James Sargent converts the 45.

Sean Rafferty bursts forward for Meath and links up superbly with James Conlon, before Donal Keogan is played through on goal.

Keogan shows great composure, taking his time to dummy the goalkeeper before finishing low into the bottom corner to give Meath an early lead.

Derry immediately respond at the other end, with James Sargent driving through and unleashing a goal-bound effort on his first championship start, but Ronan Ryan produces a brilliant block to divert it behind for a 45.

Meath respond immediately with a chance of their own as James Conlon’s effort comes back off the post and goes wide.

The Royals are kept scoreless again moments later, with Matthew Costello also sending his attempt wide as both sides continue to trade early opportunities without finding the target in these opening exchanges.

James Sargent, making his first championship start for the Oak Leafers, gets on the end of the move but sees his effort drift wide of the posts.

Sean Hurson gets this crucial All-Ireland Championship eliminator under way at Celtic Park, with Derry and Meath both fighting to keep their Sam Maguire hopes alive.

The visitors will have the benefit of a strong breeze in the opening half.

Today's game against Meath at Celtic Park offers another opportunity to halt the slide.

A victory over Meath would not erase the struggles of the past two seasons, but it would provide evidence that the county's decline is not irreversible.

The new football format highlights the perils of defeat, with a loss often bringing early championship elimination and an abrupt end to the summer campaign.

"I suppose it's very early in the year to be thinking that teams are going to be exiting the championship but such is the nature of the way it's structured," added Bradley.

"Derry will be just delighted to have home advantage because Celtic Park is notoriously a very, very difficult place for teams to go.

"The lads getting to sleep in their own bed the night before a match is something I always loved. Whilst you love getting away to some of the best stadiums all over Ireland, there's always that advantage of playing at your home ground.

"There's always usually a big breeze blowing down in Celtic Park and obviously Derry players are well used to that and well aware of that, that's massive."

Derry's Ulster Championship exit only deepened the sense of frustration; they led Monaghan by 11 points heading into the final quarter of their Ulster SFC semi-final, before ultimately falling to defeat after extra time.

"The championship draw, I suppose, Antrim and then the winners of Monaghan and Cavan, a lot of people probably thought that Derry were bankers for an Ulster final," Bradley said.

"They probably should have seen that semi-final out. So again, the season hasn't caught light yet."

Despite the disappointing results, Bradley was encouraged by aspects of Derry's display against Armagh and feels the foundations remain in place.

"I thought for large parts of the Armagh game they did rightly," he said.

"Armagh, to me, are one of the top teams in the country. I thought Derry gave them plenty of bother.

"If Derry can get a win on Saturday night, then they go on to the next round with real confidence and God knows where their season could end up.

"Getting to Croke Park would be massive in an All-Ireland quarter-final. I don't think Derry should fear anybody. They've still got a core of very, very good players."

Ciaran Meenagh makes three changes to the Derry side that suffered defeat by Armagh in Round One of the All-Ireland series a fortnight ago.

Paul Cassidy comes into the full-forward line in place of Niall Loughlin, while James Sargent is handed his first championship start after making his senior debut against the Orchard County. Dan Higgins replaces Shea Downey and is rewarded with his first championship start for the Oak Leafers.

There is also a welcome boost for the home side, with goalkeeper Odhrán Lynch named among the substitutes for the first time this season following his return from injury.

Meanwhile, Robbie Brennan has been forced into two late changes to his starting line-up ahead of throw-in at Celtic Park.

Adam O'Neill, who had originally been named to replace the injured Ruiarí Kinsella in midfield, drops to the bench, with Jack Flynn coming into the side. There is also a start for Jack O'Connor, who replaces Charlie O'Connor, meaning Meath's midfield pairing is now Flynn and O'Connor.

Kinsella, meanwhile, remains a notable absentee and is set to miss the remainder of the season after suffering a cruciate ligament injury.

Derry: Shea McGuckin; Padraig McGrogan, Brendan Rogers, Conor McCluskey; Conor Doherty, Gareth McKinless, Eoin McEvoy; Conor Glass, Dan Higgins; Ethan Doherty, James Sargent, Ruairi Forbes; Paul Cassidy, Shane McGuigan, Lachlan Murray.

Subs: Odhran Lynch, Diarmuid Baker, Charlie Diamond, Shea Downey, Conall Higgins, Sean Kearney, Niall Loughlin, Niall O'Donnell, Ruairi O'Mianain, Niall Toner, Sean Young, Patrick McGurk, James Murray, Ryan Mulholland, Matthew Downey.

Meath: Sean Brennan; Seamus Lavin, Sean Rafferty, Ronan Ryan; Donal Keogan, Bryan Menton, Sean Coffey; Cian McBride, Jack Flynn; Jack O'Connor, Matthew Costello, Ciaran Caulfield; Jordan Morris, James Conlon, Eoghan Frayne.

Subs: Billy Hogan, Brian O'Halloran, Killian Smyth, Cathal Hickey, Adam O'Neill, Cahrlie O'Connor, Ronan Jones, Keith Curtis, James McEntee, Conor Duke, Aaron Lynch.

Referee: Sean Hurson (Tyrone)

Image source, BBC Sport

Fermanagh become the second Ulster county to advance to the last four of the Tailteann Cup after they defeat Sligo 2-25 to 0-9 at Brewster Park.

Down have also made the semi-finals, along with Antrim's conquerors Wicklow and Offaly.

John McGovern
BBC Sport NI contributor at Celtic Park

Good evening and welcome to a sun-soaked Celtic Park as Derry host Meath in a winner-takes-all All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Round 2B showdown.

There is no second chance tonight.

The winners advance to Round Three and keep their Sam Maguire hopes alive, while the losers will see their championship campaign come to an abrupt end.

Both counties arrive under pressure after disappointing defeats in Round One. Derry were beaten by Ulster champions Armagh, while Meath surrendered a nine-point lead before falling to Cork in a dramatic encounter at Páirc Uí Rinn.

The stakes could hardly be higher. Robbie Brennan's Royals have yet to register a championship victory this season despite claiming the Division Two league title and promotion to the top flight, while Derry's only championship win of 2026 came against Antrim in April.

Since then, the Oak Leafers have suffered successive defeats to Monaghan and Armagh and find themselves fighting to keep their season alive on home soil.

Throw-in is at 19:00 BST with Tyrone referee Sean Hurson set to get proceedings under way.

Stay with us for live coverage of the final fixture on a blockbuster day of championship action.

Derry have played 27 league and championship games since that victory over the Dubs, winning just eight, drawing two, and losing 17. Shockingly, they did not win a single league or championship game throughout the 2025 season.

Only three of those victories have come in the championship: a group-stage win over Westmeath in 2024, a penalty shoot-out victory over Mayo in the preliminary quarter-final later that year, and a win over Antrim in this year's Ulster Championship.

For former Oak Leaf star Paddy Bradley, the issue cutting deepest into Derry's recent struggles is not tactical or structural, but psychological.

"The one issue I have with Derry at the minute is that a lot of players seem to be devoid of a bit of confidence," Bradley told BBC Sport NI.

"Derry are lacking at the minute that wee bit of belief and confidence. It probably could do with the likes of Brendan Rogers, Shane McGuigan, Conor Glass and Gareth McKinless coming back into a bit of form.

"I'm not saying they're playing overly poorly this year. They just maybe haven't hit the heights that they were playing out of a couple of years ago."

Image source, Getty Images

Two years ago, Derry were being spoken about as genuine All-Ireland contenders.

The Oak Leafers had claimed their first Ulster title in 24 years in 2022 and retained it in 2023, becoming only the second team from the county to achieve this feat.

They also suffered narrow All-Ireland semi-final defeats in 2022 and 2023, the latter a 1-17 to 1-15 reverse to Kerry having led by two points with five minutes left.

When they beat reigning All-Ireland champions Dublin to claim the National Football League Division One title in 2024, they appeared to have rubber-stamped their credentials, not just as Sam Maguire hopefuls, but as genuine contenders.

No one could have predicted the dramatic turn in their fortunes following that league success. The statistics are stark and make grim reading for Derry supporters.

Image source, Getty Images

A strong second half for Monaghan, who breeze past Roscommon and into round three of the All-Ireland SFC.