New-look Louth hurlers open Kehoe Shield account with comfortable victory over DCU St. Patrick's

Kehoe Shield round one

Louth 2-20 DCU St. Patrick's 0-17

Paul McCormack's reign as Louth senior hurling manager got off to a winning start at DkIT on Tuesday night.

The Reds recovered from a slow start to record a nine-point victory over DCU St. Patrick's in the Kehoe Shield.

Captain for the night, Pearse Óg's Gerard Smyth led the team from centre-back, chipping in with six points, while David Kettle caught the eye and finished on 0-5.

Five of the home side's starting forwards got on the scoresheet, including Stephen Rafferty, whose goal helped Louth take a 1-10 to eleven points lead to the interval.

The Wee County produced an impressive display after the break, adding another 1-10 to their tally compared to just six points from DCU, who had Liam Pender in scoring form.

Debutant Pádraig Fallon became the second Naomh Moninne clubman to bag a major on the night, registering the winners' second half goal as Louth stretched their lead.

Ahead of an encounter with Longford in the new year, victory all but puts Louth into the inaugural Shield final.

Louth: Donal Connolly; Paul Challoner, Andy McCrave, Rickie McKeown; Feidhelm Joyce, Gerard Smyth (0-6), Darren O'Hanrahan; Jamie McDonnell (0-2), Stephen Kettle; Pádraig Fallon (1-0), David Kettle (0-5), Peter Brennan (0-1); Stephen Rafferty (1-0), Seaghan Conneely, Robert Wallace (0-1)

Subs: Gerard McKeown (0-3), James Costelloe (0-1), Donal Ryan (0-1), Mark Wallace, Andrew Smyth