County team is alive and well

4/13/2006 - By: Cóilín Duffy

FOLLOWING two years of inactivity the Laois junior football management is hoping they can make a good impression in this year’s Leinster championship which begins on at the end of May.

Laois are hoping this year to turn things completely on their head following painful defeat in the Leinster semi-final against Meath by 5-14 to 1-6 in 2003 at Croke Park. A number of Leinster counties opted out of the junior championship in recent years but slowly counties have been coming back into the fold and nine counties will take part in the provincial championship.

Despite the nature of the defeat suffered in the last outing at this grade Laois haven’t a bad record in this competition. In 2002 lost out to Wicklow in the opening round by a slender margin on a 2-7 to 1-9 scoreline in O’Moore Park with the Garden County going on to claim Leinster honours before returning to O’Moore Park where they disposed Kerry in the all-Ireland final.

This competition is certainly a worthwhile one and gives players from intermediate and junior clubs the chance to shine and make a name for themselves in a county jersey. In 1993, when Laois last won the Leinster title, the team was backboned by players such as Hugh Emerson, David Sweeney and Damien Delaney.

All these players went on to win a Leinster under 21 title a year later against Meath at Newbridge and distinguished themselves as members of the Laois senior team over the following decade.

With the Leinster inter-mediate club champions Crettyard forming the backbone of the ’06 crop of Laois junior players and manager Sammy Kelly at the helm there is a positive feeling that Laois can make major inroads in this competition this year.

Sammy is aided by his selectors Alan Langton of Barrowhouse, Larry Doone of Spink and Brian Dempsey of Mountmellick in what is a tough task in ensuring they can get a look at as many players as possible.

There are some notable players eligible for this team should they rise to the challenge following their all-Ireland campaign with Laois under 21 team. Among those eligible to line out for the Laois junior team are Michael John Tierney and Scott Conroy of Ballyroan, Rory Stapleton and Simon Shortall of Annanough, Niall Donoher of Courtwood, Kevin Meaney of Arles/Kilcruise and Cathal "g Greene of Park/Ratheniska.

The panel had a tough opening game on Wednesday last where they faced Kildare under lights in a challenge match at Ballon, Co Carlow.

This was Laois’s first outing and despite not having the eligible under 21 panellists or others key players to club commitments, the team put in an encouraging performance.

The opening half of this game was a keenly contested affair with a goal for Kildare ensuring that the sides entered the half-time break deadlocked on a 0-6 to 1-3 score line.

Although Kildare shot six points during the second half, it wasn’t enough as Laois tagged on nine points and utilised five substitutes during that period to finish 0-15 to 1-9 winners.

This was a very competitive game and a good test for the Laois lads ahead of further contests. They hope to play Kilkenny in a challenge game tonight to continue building on the momentum gained from last week’s win.

There aren’t too many names sticking out from the team on Wednesday night last but keeper Donal O’Mahony was manning the goals which Laois contested that famous trilogy of Leinster MFC finals in 1995. His clubmate Jarlath Challoner has also seen minor action at inter-county level in a Laois shirt.

A notable substitute perhaps is local GAA journalist Steven Miller who lined out with the Courtwood club until a few years ago before making a switch to the Annanough club.

Laois as mentioned above didn’t compete in last years Leinster Junior Football Championship but play Wicklow in the opening round in Aughrim on May 31.

Only one Laois football team managed a win in Aughrim since the ‘Battle of Aughrim’ in ’86; the Laois under 21s had a victory there in 1992. The current crop of Laois junior footballers will be hoping to add to this when they meet Wicklow at the end of May.

LAOIS JFC v Kildare: Donal O’Mahony (Mountmellick); James Keegan (Ballyroan), Eoin O’Brien (Abbeyleix), John Fenlon (Courtwood) (0-1); John Madigan (Ballyroan) (0-1), Liam Kelly (Crettyard) (0-1), John Jones (Crettyard); Alan Burnell (Abbeyleix) (0-1), Jarlath Challoner (Mountmellick) (0-2); Keith Nolan (Crettyard) (0-4), Mark Kelly (Crettyard), Gerry Scully (Ballyroan) (0-1); Mike Langton (Barrowhouse) (0-1), Fergal Fennell (Portlaoise) (0-2), Andrew Mulhare (Courtwood) (0-1). Subs used: Noel Kelly (Crettyard) for O’Mahony (HT), Steven Miller (Annanough) for Jones (HT), Mark O’Sullivan (Portlaoise) for Madigan, Joe Murphy (Barrowhouse) for Kelly (40 mins), John Madigan for Gerry Scully (inj).