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Drama in spades but no finesse

THERE was incident aplenty in this eagerly-awaited Louth derby played in front of the live TV cameras – but in terms of quality it was poor fare. While it's too early to pass any sort of valid judgement, the signs were not too promising, with spectators having every right to expect a lot better from the respective teams and indeed from the officials.

Reds raise their sights

LOUTH can start aiming for promotion after a best performance of the campaign in Brewster Park on Sunday resulted in an impressive victory over Fermanagh which puts the Ulster county in danger of relegation. However, it's in the other direction which Peter Fitzpatrick's side is heading, as added to wins over Wexford and Cavan the display in Enniskillen puts them alone in second place in the table. Leaders Antrim, with a 100% record, have still to play the men from the Wee County in the penultimate round, so it's all bubbling up nicely.

Blackrock athletes' huge medal haul

BLACKROCK AC's Aine McElarney showed herself again to be a class act when she raced away from reigning Louth sprint champion Eimear O'Rourke to take gold in the under-14 Girls 60m at the Boyne AC Indoor Sports staged at Gormanston College last Sunday.

Smyth builds platform as hurlers dig deep

LOUTH earned themselves a four-way share of the table lead with this victory over Roscommon in St Brigid's Park, Dowdallshill on Sunday. With first use of a stiff breeze, the hosts established a ten-point interval lead, and although they went without a score for the first 22 minutes of the new half, had enough in reserve to stave off their opponents who twice cut the gap to three points.

Louth minors advance to Leinster final

THIS was a second and welldeserved win in for Louth in this competition against Offaly in Durrow, near Tullamore.It puts them in the final as winners of their section. Exchanges in the opening twenty minutes were evenly shared but the more direct play from the home side edged them into a 0-3 to 0-1 lead.

Holidays are off!

By GAA

LOUTH will have to put the St Patrick's Day festivities on hold as manager Peter Fitzpatrick has scheduled extra training sessions this week – starting on the national holiday.