Louth GAA club | Mitchels overpower Dowdallshill in JFC opener

The DKIT Sport Louth GAA Junior Football Championship got underway in PPFS Darver on Friday evening, and for John Mitchels, it could hardly have gone any better.

They dismantled Dowdallshill by 6-15 to 0-1 in a game that was effectively over before it had really begun, the Ballybailie side producing the kind of ruthless display that will have sent a message across the county.

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From the throw-in, Mitchels set the tone, and within thirty seconds, Trevor Matthews split the posts for the opening score of the campaign. Less than a minute later, Adam Keenan seized on an opening and buried the ball in the net.

Keenan and John Gallagher tacked on further points, and by the sixth minute, Andrew Bingham had added another hammer blow when he burst through and rifled in a second goal.

At 2-3 to no score after just seven minutes, the gap was already daunting. Dowdallshill battled hard for a foothold and twice carved out chances from frees, with Paul Flynn and Eoin Maguire both off target.

Their failure to convert was punished almost immediately as Keenan struck again, palming home his second goal to extend the advantage to 3-3 to 0-0 by the quarter hour.

A good team move down the right saw Gallagher get on the end of a Gareth Kane pass to score their fourth goal, and scarcely sixty seconds later Conor Reilly fired home number five to make it 5-3 without reply.

Kane added another point before substitute Gavin Gallagher knocked over the last score of the half, reacting quickest after a shot cannoned off the crossbar. At the interval, Mitchels were 5-5 to the good, their superiority plain to see.

Half time

The restart brought a slower pace, but Mitchels never lost control. Bingham’s second goal arrived seven minutes into the half, stretching the margin further.

Kane and Keenan tagged on points, while Dowdallshill endured more frustration with another free drifting wide. On forty-six minutes forward, Stephen Murphy slotted over what would prove their only score of the match.

If there was ever a risk of Mitchels easing off, Murphy’s point quickly extinguished it. The leaders responded by rattling off eight unanswered scores in the closing stages.

Keenan, Gallagher, Kane and John Bingham all found the target, and substitutes Robbie Coyle, Stephen Bingham, and Sean McNiece joined the list of scorers as the game wound towards a conclusion.

For Mitchels, it was a dream start: six goals, a spread of scorers across the team, and a defensive unit that never allowed their opponents to settle. For Dowdallshill, it was a night where effort wasn’t matched by execution.

Murphy’s lone score was at least some consolation, though his team now face a crucial tie with Sean McDermotts in the next round.

As for Mitchels, they will travel into their next outing knowing that a victory would guarantee top spot in the group and safe passage to the knockout stages. 

Final Score: John Mitchels 6-15, Dowdallshill 0-1.

John Mitchels: Michael Quinn; Barry Kirk, Aaron Kane, Mikey Nulty; Conor Reilly, Jamie Durnin, John Bingham (1-2); James Clarke, Trevor Matthews (0-1); Ruairi McCann, John Gallagher (0-2), James Sands; Andrew Bingham (3-0), Gareth Kane (0-4), Adam Keenan (2-3).

Subs: Cole Leavy on for Conor Reilly; Robbie Coyle (0-1) on for John Sands (39'); Stephen Bingham (0-1) on for Andrew Bingham (48'); Seán McNeice (0-1) on for James Clarke (54'); Liam Gorman on for John Gallagher (58').

Dowdallshill: Paudie Murphy; Feidhlim O’Callaghan, James Woods, Stephen King; Ray Campbell, Andy Byrne, Kevin McGonagle; Justin Halley, Paul Flynn; Paddy McKenna, Stephen Murray (0-1), Tommy Craig; Cathal Byrne, Eoin Maguire, Davie Campion.

Subs: Gavin Baxter on for Tommy Craig (23'); Eddie Lapinskras on for Stephen King (24'); Emmet O’Brien on for Justin Halley (44'), Cian Kieran on for Eoin Maguire (55'), Thomas McKenny on for Davie Campion (55').

Referee: Colm Keenan (Cooley Kickhams).