Wolfe Tones bridge an 87-year gap with junior championship win

Ardee St Mary’s and Dundalk Gaels first saw the light of day in 1928. That means both have a biggie to celebrate in four years’ time. For the record, St Bride’s are also 96 years old.

Mary’s and Gaels, successful this year at senior and intermediate levels, are not, however, the oldest clubs celebrating championship success.

It was six years earlier when Wolfe Tones were founded. Like the others mentioned above they have stood the test of time, but have lived of loyalty and hard work more than success.

There have been Ardee and Dundalk successes in recent times, Mary’s recently bringing up a championship three-timer and Gaels setting an intermediate record with five wins, but Tones had, before beating John Mitchel’s in the junior final, to go back 87 years for the last time they stood on the podium.

After that they appeared in just one other championship final, beaten by Seán O’Mahony’s in the 1941 junior.

Tones were at one time one of the county’s strongest clubs, sending out teams to win five senior championships, including a three-in-a-row, which came soon after the blue-and-yellow colours were worn for the first time.

That was long ago, and since then there have been more disappointments than delights. You can understand, therefore, the joy there was among supporters when Dwayne Leavy took charge of the Christy Bellew Cup at Dunleer’s Pairc Uí Mhuirí after his side’s 2-10 to 2-2.

And it can only be assumed that the celebrations afterwards in Drogheda – welcoming the Bellew Cup for the first time in a decade – were nothing short of mighty, maybe even better than the show put on in Ardee and Dundalk over the previous weekend.

There’s sure to have been a special cheer for Eoghan Brennan, who, on the strength of his 1-6, was named player of the match.

For Mitchel’s, it was a second defeat in a junior final in three years. A Conor Grimes-captained Glen Emmets were their conquerors in 2021 when Lady Luck turned her back on them.

Peter McGrane, who, as chairman, has played a huge part in reviving Wolfe Tones’ fortunes in recent times, is a bookmaker. Fair to say that if he also likes to have a bet himself, it would have taken a huge leap of faith for him to have a few quid on his team before the competition got underway.

But at the same time, if Peter had made a book on who’d win the race, it’s doubtful if he had punters queuing up to take a punt on his side. Like Gaels in the intermediate, they’d have been a big price.

But money is never a factor when it comes to winning the championship. Peter would have been a proud man on Platin Road after the final, eyeing up the Christy Bellew.

When Tones last won a title prior to Sunday they were competing in senior. Interesting to note that two of the other semi-finalists were St Mary’s and Gaels. Tones beat Gaels before going on to account for Mary’s in the final, 2-6 to 1-2. And we wonder had any of Sunday’s team forbearers playing on the 1937 team.

“Muckle” McKeown’s father, Mick, was captain on a team that read: Patrick Maguire; Willie Crilly, M McKeown, Vincent ‘Plug’ Kerr; Tom McKeown, Paddy McManus, Patrick Sarsfield; Paddy Dwyer, Jimmy Mohan; Peadar ‘Webs’ Martin, Paddy McKeown, Hugh Fanning; Paddy ‘Hardship’ McCann, Eugene Penders, Christy Faulkner.

‘Plug’, ‘Webs’ and ‘Hardship’ – they don’t give players nicknames like that any more. Previous winning Tones teams had a ‘Mockie’, a ‘Son’ and a ’Gunty’ included.