TOMMY DOWD, who was sent off in a Meath club championship game, has got off with the minimum suspension of two weeks.

This is good news for Meath manager Sean Boylan and his selectors as it was felt Dowd might get a two-month suspension which would cause him to miss the Leinster first-round clash with Dublin on June 15th.

Dowd, who captained Meath to All-Ireland victory last September, was sent off playing for his club Dunderry against Trim last Sunday week. The Meath County Board decided on the minimum suspension after referee Eugene McDonnell reported Dowd for rough play.

Dowd was previously dismissed in a National League quarter-final against Mayo in March last year and was out of action for a month as a result.

The GAA seems to have hit the jackpot once again with the National League final between Cork and Kerry taking on all the trappings of a Munster championship final.

The decision to make the match all-ticket seems to have set off a frantic hunt for tickets and it seems certain at this stage that a capacity crowd of 30,000 will be present. Both county boards were inundated with requests for tickets yesterday.

The limitation on the crowd has been forced upon the organisers because new safety barriers are being installed. The normal capacity is about 50,000.

It is understood that both sets of selectors decided on their teams last night, but they will not be revealed until this morning. Cork will hope that Liam Honohan has recovered from injury to take his place in the middle of the field.

If he is selected that would be the only alteration from the team which started against Kildare in the semi-final. However, Sean Og O hAilpin deputised most impressively when he came on in place of Honohan from the start of the match against Kildare.

Cork are fortunate also that Joe Kavanagh has returned from Australia in fine fettle and, although he could not be described as match fit, he is a very valuable player to have in reserve.

The Cork players' loyalty is epitomised by the decision of Colin Corkery, with the support of his bride, to return home from their honeymoon in Cyprus to support the Cork cause.

In Kerry, most concern surrounds the fitness of Dara O Cinneide, while there has been a certain amount of worry also about William Kirby, Seamus Moynihan and Gene Farrell.

O Cinneide and Farrell missed the semi-final against Laois while Kirby picked up an ankle injury during the game and was forced to leave the field just three minutes from the end. Nevertheless late fitness tests, particularly on Moynihan, O Cinneide and Farrell, will be part of the preparations before Sunday's showdown.

Kerry can also call on the talented Mike Francis Russell, who was held in reserve during the Laois match until well into the second half. This was because Russell was being spared for the under-21 side's semi-final against Meath last weekend.

While Kerry and Cork focus on the league, the other counties have turned their minds to the provincial championships. Dublin, who face All-Ireland champions Meath in Croke Park on June 1 5th, are worried about the condition of Ciaran Whelan who broke his arm less than a minute into the intermediate league match between Raheny and St Monica's last weekend. His right arm is in plaster from the wrist to the elbow and his chances of being ready for the Meath clash seem remote.

Meanwhile, the attraction of Gaelic football has spread to Taiwan where a special tournament is being staged on the weekend of June 6th to 8th. The competition is called the Guinness Asia Games where the Derek Brady Crystal Cup will be at stake. Derek Brady was tragically killed in a motor accident in Taipei last October having being a central figure in the organisation of Gaelic games.