Meath made mincemeat of Wexford to seal their spot in the final four with plenty of panache and ounces of comfort, seventeen point victors at Pairc Tailteann.

From the get-go, it became immediately apparent who had the bit between their teeth more for a semi-final spot as Meath breathtakingly pummelled their guests in the opening exchanges. 

Jordan Morris, prominent scorer a fortnight ago with half-a-dozen against Down, picked up the scoring baton right where he’d left it, firing the game’s opening point inside a minute.

The George to Morris’ Fred, James McEntee, swiftly got himself his first score before Morris then made it a three-point gap in the sixth minute.

As engrossing early on was the individual scoring competition between the Meath duo and they both bagged braces before a quarter of an hour had elapsed, Aaron Lynch also getting in on the fun as Wexford’s woes deepened, 0-8 down early on.

Epitomising the momentum was Eoghan Nolan’s first point for Wexford being instantly cancelled out by McEntee’s fourth score.

Lynch then rubbed salt in Wexford wounds, lashing a low strike beyond Darragh Brooks in goal as the hosts extended their chasm of a lead to eleven points.

Morris marked his fifth point in the twentieth minute, with Matthew Costello becoming the hosts’ fourth different scorer,

Defender Glen Malone fired over and a Nolan long-range heaved the bedraggled visitors up to 0-3.

With the half’s last kick though, Lynch fired high and true as Meath took a twelve-point buffer into the break, surely assured of a semi-final space.

Mark Rossiter, a key role in Wexford’s progression to the last eight, sandwiched Costello’s second score as the visitors hoped for a less relenting thirty-five minutes.

Instead, Meath produced another, albeit less intense, siege of scoring, laying down a firm marker to any other counties with Tailteann Cup glory on their minds.

McEntee pulled level with Morris with his fifth before overtaking him outright in the next play, his two points making it 1-15 to 0-5.

Jack Flynn and Paidi Hughes swapped points apiece before Meath were merciless once more. 

A quick-fire trio of scores doing the damage again, this time replacement Daithi McGowan endearing himself to the home faithful.

Liam Coleman hooked over Wexford’s eighth point, but the Royals responded through Costello’s third accurate aim of the match. 

Away replacement Ben Brosnan replied instantly but Morris, then popped up again, drifting a little since his all-action first twenty minutes, with second half-a-dozen tally in successive matches.

Jonathan Bealin and Eoghan Frayne, respective replacements, fired over points as Wexford worked up a strong finish, Brosnan’s second (back-to-back braces in cameo appearances for him), and Richie Waters reducing the deficit to thirteen points, 1-22 to 0-11, entering additional time.

Echoing his earlier, now departed, high point scorers, McGowan doubled his tally with a well-taken late goal to put clear daylight between the teams.

Eoin Porter pointed Wexford’s final score yet Costello’s fourth was a fitting finish for a Meath side that, frankly, mullered their opponents from the first whistle to the final whistle.

Into the final four, Meath march and on this evidence, could take some stopping.