A LITTLE piece of good fortune at just the right moment can make all the difference in tight games, and so it proved on Sunday as Declan Byrne's 'freak' 67th-minute goal sent Louth through to their second successive O'Byrne Cup final.

Trailing by a point to 14-man Kildare, the Reds needed a spark of inspiration from somewhere and it came from the most unlikely of sources as the corner-back's lofted centre-cumshot deceived Shane McCormack and clipped the underside of his crossbar on its way to the net.

A cruel blow for Kieran McGeeney's hard-working side, but Louth weren't about to look a gift-horse in the mouth and further points from Colm Judge (free), Ronan Carroll and Shane Lennon made absolutely certain of a repeat final showdown with the students of DCU in two and half weeks' time.

This may not have been the same Kildare side that brushed aside all-comers en route to the Leinster final last year, before pushing Tyrone so close in the Qualifiers, but with a formidable back six on duty and a towering midfield pairing of Dermot Earley and Daryl Flynn, Louth can be quietly satisfied with their afternoon's work, even if the 47th-minute dismissal of Brian Flanagan helped their cause significantly.

A bright start was also half the battle from Louth's point of view.

Brian White opened the scoring after a foul on JP Rooney and the lively Andy McDonnell had a hand in the next two scores, teeing up Ray Finnegan for a second and drawing a foul for Colm Judge to stroke over the third from a free.

Three minutes gone and Kildare had yet to venture out of their own half, but it didn't take the home team long to settle.

They were missing John Doyle and Alan Smith, while James Kavanagh and Ronan Sweeney were held in reserve until the second period, but the Lilywhites did not miss their absent friends one bit as they tore into Louth's lead with some impressive marksmanship.

Earley, Ronan Walsh and Robert Kelly quickly drew them level, before makeshift full-forward Karl Ennis hooked over the lead score on the 15-minute mark.

But Louth didn't panic and another Colm Judge point levelled matters up again as things started to get rather scrappy.

Both sides lost their way a bit, but Judge and Ennis traded points to keep the gap at the minimum and just as the game started in a flurry of excitement, the half ended brightly too.

A superb effort from Brian White tied the scores up again, but Kildare were starting to exert their authority and three points on the bounce from Earley, Keith Cribbin and Walsh seemed to finally awaken a subdued home crowd.

Louth looked like a team who needed the sanctity of the dressing-room, but Andy McDonnell made sure they adjourned in touch with points off either foot to close the deficit to 0-8 to 0-7 at the break.

After quite a bit of coaxing from the referee, Kildare belatedly emerged for the second half and if the plan was to catch Louth cold, it worked.

Padraig O'Neill and Kelly restored a three-point margin, but Louth refused to slip quietly away and points from Ronan Carroll and JP Rooney got them back in touch. Emm e t

Bolton and White swapped scores, but Kildare were dealt a severe blow when centre-back Brian Flanagan hauled Ray Finnegan to the ground with a high challenge to collect his second yellow card of the afternoon.

The dismissal didn't have any immediate effect on the Lilywhites as Karl Ennis converted their first score from a free to open a two-point gap, but as the half wore on Louth started to make efficient use of their extra man.

With Ray Finnegan joining the attack at every opportunity, the Kildare defence started to show signs of fatigue and a free from Judge and a superb longrange effort from Byrne soon had the visitors level.

A Rooney free then put Louth ahead for the first time since the 12th minute, but Kildare still had some fight left and regained the advantage with two points in as many minutes from Anthony Rainbow and substitute, James Kavanagh.

However, they didn't score again and Byrne's fortutious goal put Louth in the driving seat soon aftewards.

In a much improved display by the men in red, Byrne, Ronan Greene and Ray Finnegan caught the eye at the back, while Keenan and Carroll held their own against a daunting Kildare midfield pairing.

Up front, Andy McDonnell's movement and passing caused problems for the Kildare defence all afternoon, while JP Rooney was equally effective at full forward.

Retaining the O'Byrne Cup was never part of Peter Fitzpatrick's master plan, but with a repeat final against DCU coming up on February 21st, it will certainly be on the agenda now.

- John SAVAGE