Dundalk Gaels "not going to take anything lightly" says McKeown

Dundalk Gaels captain Dylan McKeown shared his thoughts after a momentous victory in the Louth Intermediate Football Championship final, where his team defeated Hunterstown Rovers to claim a historic fifth title.

McKeown admitted that the two-point lead made things nerve-wracking. Reflecting on a tight finish to the game he said: “Two points is always a dangerous lead, and I was nearly pleading with Stephen Johnson to blow the whistle up, but he wasn’t looking at me.”

He went on to praise Thomas O’Connell’s crucial contribution, “Thomas stepped up with two brilliant goals.

“He scored a goal last week and we asked him again at half time if could he do it again, and he came up trumps, so thank God we got over the line.”

The Gaels found themselves a point down at halftime, but McKeown felt the team wasn’t far off. “We were happy enough but felt we didn't have enough aggression in our tackles.

“We knew Stephen was going to let it go; he told us before the game. We weren’t getting into their faces,” he explained.

The captain was critical of their first-half defending, allowing Hunterstown to pick up easy points. “They were getting a few handy scores around the tip of our D, and we don’t pride ourselves on that, we pride ourselves on getting bodies out and making it tough to score,” he said.

McKeown was satisfied with his performance, scoring five points in the final. “I was a wee bit deeper last week and not in enough dangerous areas of the pitch where I know I can do damage,” he noted.

He added: “There was no wind, and the pitch was in pristine condition to kick points.”

He also acknowledged the impact Ryan Burns had on the first half, admitting he thought it might turn into a shootout. “Some days they come off for you, and some days they don’t, thankfully they came off for me today.”

The Gaels had taken some lessons from their drawn semi-final the week before. “We were bitterly disappointed with the lead we had at half time, we were 6–1 up,” the 21-year-old revealed.

“We didn’t play well last week, and we were lucky to come out of it with a draw.” That experience led them to adjust their tactics for the final.

“We changed our plan this week and wanted to throw something different at Hunterstown. We pressed their kick-outs a wee bit and got a bit of joy from it,” he said.

With the Leinster championship on the horizon, McKeown stressed that the team isn’t done yet. “Kevin (McKernan) spoke every week that we want to extend our season by two weeks, but we have a job to do in the league next Sunday against Stabannon. We have to win to keep ourselves safe or we will be playing the O’Connells in a relegation game.”

He added, “Leinster is something that we will look at, I think we play the Dublin champions now and it is something that we have targeted before the championship started.”

Returning to senior football next season he noted the need for continued hard work. “We still have a bit of work to do.

“Going from intermediate to senior we got a few lessons the last time, so we are not going to take anything lightly,” he warned.

“We want to be challenging for senior championships in the next number of years, but we have a lot of work to do before we get there.”

Finally, lifting the Seamus Flood Cup was a significant personal milestone for McKeown, who admitted that previous seasons had weighed heavily on him. “It was something that weighed heavily on me not winning a championship game.

“The only game I ever won was the relegation final for two years in a row, and that doesn’t sit well with me.”

“You’re putting in all the hours after training and on the days you’re not training, trying to strive for better things but when your club aren’t doing it then you have no window to show what you can go and do.

“It’s a stepping stone, we haven’t lost since our last league game against Lannleire. It’s the first time we got our panel together and we haven’t lost.

“On Saturdays and weeks off, we went on training camps up the north, we were playing northern teams and we put in some performances. They gave us a few lessons too that really stood to us and it’s a stepping stone to go again.

When speaking on the pride that winning will give his family, friends, and fellow Gaels, McKeown went on to add: “Pride is definitely a massive one.

“To see tears on men’s faces that have served the club for 40 or 50 years it actually brings joy to your face that you can do that for them. 

“Just to be able to bring joy to their face and wash away any problems that they have for an hour, if they are fighting illness or whatever.

“It’s absolutely brilliant. We are the lucky ones that get to go out on the pitch each and every day and that is what drives me on probably at half time. 

“I don’t want to disappoint my granny or anything after the game, I don’t want her giving out so that drives me on.”