Louth GAA club | Naomh Martin preserve SFC status for 2027 with victory over Hunterstown

Naomh Martin produced a late scoring spurt to preserve their Louth GAA Senior Football Championship status for 2027 with this victory over Hunterstown Rovers in Darver on Saturday afternoon last, a result which sees last year’s Intermediate champions demoted straight back to the IFC for next season.

Ultimately, it was a late scoring spree from the Martins, inspired by the returning Tom Gray which decided this game’s outcome, with 1-3 from the forward following his second half introduction, seeing the Martins extend their Joe Ward membership for another season.

This was a relegation play off final largely decided by the treacherous weather conditions in Darver, with the swirling breeze making shooting at the posts difficult to judge at times.

Shooting into these elements in the first half, the Martins grabbed a crucial goal which given the wind they were shooting into, must have felt like six points, as captain Evan Whelan slotted to the net inside three minutes after a John Clutterbuck shot had dropped short. Clutterbuck himself was again hugely influential for the Martins, with 28 possessions.

The Martins’ ploy of keeping the ball in long periods of slow attacks was working early on, as they maintained that three point lead after 15 minutes.

Dean Burns clipped over Hunterstown’s first score following a Cillian Taaffe turnover, but John Clutterbuck cut inside following a Sean Healy pass to kick over for the Martins from close range.

Some poor play from Hunterstown following a short kickout, saw Ben Callanan and Charlie McDonnell regain possession for the Martins before the impressive Craig Callanan landed another point. Ryan Ward (f) then closed that gap to three at 1-2 to 0-2 in the Jocks’ favour after the first quarter.

Hunterstown were still dominant on kickouts in the first half, winning 10 out of 14 kickouts contested, including five from seven on the Martins kickout, with James Rogers, Cillian Taaffe and James Russell getting their hands to the ball here.

But Hunterstown were unable to consistently turn that dominance into scores, having hit two wides and one short, by the time Ryan Burns magnificently found the range from outside the scoring arc to close the gap to a point.

A minute later, Hunterstown did take the lead when Ryan Ward converted a two pointed free, leaving Rovers 0-6 to 1-2 ahead in the 18th minute.

The Martins, despite shooting against the breeze, were more economical than their opponents, with 1-4 from 7 first half shots, and Jack Murphy instantly responded with a fine point from the left wing in a move involving Joe McGrane and Charlie McDonnell, before a Dara McDonnell free gave last year’s Senior champions the lead heading into added time.

Ryan Ward again equalised with a free to leave the sides level at the break at 0-7 to 1-4.

Second Half:

A minute into the second half and the Martins took the lead thanks to a Dara McDonnell two pointed free. That second half saw McDonnell show why he was nominated for the 2026 Pwc GAA/GPA Young Footballer of the Year, as he kicked two two pointers, and played a key role in the Martins winning 7 out of 11 on Hunterstown’s kickout in that second half.

McDonnell finished with 27 possessions, while Joe McGrane also stood out in the kickout department with some impressive fetches, while Jack Murphy had 32 possessions over the hour.

To their credit, Hunterstown refused to give in, despite the conditions counting against them in that second half, and Cillian Taaffe fisted a dangerous Ciaran Russell kick pass across the square over the bar for their first point.

The Martins introduced Tom Gray from the bench, and the forward kicked over from play after John Clutterbuck and Sean Healy combined in the build up.

However, Hunterstown did ask a question of the Martins when Ryan Ward who was a constant threat in attack, got a telling touch to slap the ball passed Craig Lynch after a Ryan Burns free dropped short, always a danger for defenders in those conditions.

That left Hunterstown 1-8 to 0-10 ahead approaching the end of the third quarter.

But the Martins rose to the challenge, scoring 2-5 without reply, to effectively take the game away from their opponents.

Sandwiched in between points from Jack Murphy and John Clutterbuck, Tom Gray judged the wind perfectively for a sweetly struck two pointer, to leave the Monasterboice side three points clear by the 48th minute.

Jack Murphy raised another orange flag for the Martins, who continued to dominate Hunterstown’s kickout.

When Dara McDonnell fetched one such restart, he took his steps, before setting up Clutterbuck, who found Tom Gray to slot low to the net to give the Martins, a 2-13 to 1-8 lead with nine minutes left.

McDonnell fired over another two pointer to cap off an excellent performance from him.

Hunterstown did land some late scores thanks to goalkeeper Donovan Sheridan, including an impressive two pointer facing an awkward wind, while sub Sam Scott kicked over from play to put some respectability on the scoreboard, but by then, the Martins had done enough to ensure their place in the Senior Football Championship for 2027 at Hunterstown’s expense.

Naomh Martin Scorers: Tom Gray (1-3) (1 tp), Dara McDonnell (0-5) (1 tp) (1 tpf), Jack Murphy (0-4) (1 tp), Evan Whelan (1-0), John Clutterbuck (0-2), Craig Callanan (0-1).

Hunterstown Rovers Scorers: Ryan Ward (1-4) (1tpf) (2f), Donovan Sheridan (0-3) (1 tpf) (1f), Ryan Burns (0-2) (1tp), Cillian Taaffe, Dean Burns & Sam Scott (0-1 each).

Naomh Martin: Craig Lynch; Cian Sands, Thomas Sullivan, Conor Healy; Jack Murphy, Craig Callanan, Evan Whelan; Dara McDonnell, Adam Booth; Sean Healy, John Clutterbuck, Joe McGrane; Ben Callanan, Val Leddy, Charlie McDonnell.

Subs: Tom Gray for Ben Callanan (35), Shane Morgan for McGrane (55), Mark Whelan for Craig Callanan (59).

Hunterstown Rovers: Donovan Sheridan; Euan Woodlock, Patrick Taaffe, Daithi Carroll; James Rogers, Michael Reid, Cillian Taaffe; Jason Monaghan, James Russell; Colm Murphy, Tony McKenna, Ciaran Russell; Dean Burns, Ryan Ward, Ryan Burns.

Subs: Sam Scott for Cillian Taaffe (52), Shane Halpenny for Monaghan (53), Jack Dowdall for Woodlock (55).

Referee: Bryan Smith (O’Raghallaighs).