Joe Carroll: Division Two football is guaranteed but Louth can soar even higher

Louth supporters are in dreamland, their senior football team within shouting distance of a place in the National League’s top tier. Win No 4 from six Division Two outings came at Ardee on Sunday, Cork the victims this time.

Yes, followers were here before, in 2008, after the team coached by Eamonn McEneaney beat Donegal at Breffni Park in the Division Two final to get among the elite.

But it’s different this time. The starting-point was a low one. The teams that would be providing the opposition over the autumn months had class, two of them having won their respective provincial championships last year and others who’d been playing in higher leagues in recent times.

Then there was the gulf that so many spoke about, the one dividing the third and second divisions. Louth would be doing well to retain their status, was the popular opinion.

But not only has the team guided by Mickey Harte and trained by Gavin Devlin garnered enough points to be guaranteed Division Two football next season, they are within a win of winning promotion for the third year running.

That game takes place at Croke Park on Sunday. Dublin are in the other corner, and whereas admittance to Louth’s four home games was restricted, expect to see a huge red-and-white contingent present for this crucial final round match.

It’s a winner-take-all, promotion – along with Derry – going to the team that finishes with the most scores, regardless of points difference.

A quick glance at how the Harte team have got to where they are. There were a couple of defeats to begin with – to Clare and Derry. Then came the winning streak, against Limerick, Meath, Kildare and Cork.

There were plenty of ‘if onlys’ surrounding the Clare defeat. But this reverse has lost all of its significance. Even had Louth won in Ennis, they wouldn’t be in with any better chance of promotion going into next Sunday’s game.

The defeat of Cork was quite remarkable. There hadn’t been a win over the Rebels in a league or championship match since 1994.

That you could say had no bearing on the outcome, but you’d have to think Louth’s chances of winning were greatly diminished by the absence of last year’s talisman, Sam Mulroy, and the loss in the first half of Mulroy’s successor in that role, Conor Grimes.

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But not a word about it. Though the score was evened by Cork having a player dismissed before half-time, and Louth being awarded a ‘soft’ penalty – it was saved by Michael Martin but not held, and following up, Ryan Burns palmed the rebound to the net – Louth had to get spot-on every detail of the methods that are taught in Darver exactly right.

It’s taking a lot to get used to, goalkeeper Califf making the catch of the day at midfield; wing-full McKenny more often than not in attack; full-forward Downey back helping out in defence, and a succession of crossfield and back-passing phases, enough to furrow the brows of those who long for a return of the game as it was once played.

But there was still a need for lots of what is traditional. Califf made some great saves, scores were well taken, and when there was need for the surges forward, the kind Grimes has been noted for, the Glen Emmets clubman’s replacement, Bevan Duffy, was more than an adequate replacement.

Louth 1-10, Cork 0-10. In 1957 it was 1-9 to 1-7. In between there have been eight meetings, six in the league and two at championship level. Until Sunday last, Cork had won them all.