'It always seems impossible, until it is done' - When Louth beat Dublin teams
THE RALLYING CRY from Louth midfielder Tommy Durnin was one lifted straight from the Pete McGrath book of wisdom.
“It always seems impossible, until it is done.’ Said in the context of Louth beating Dublin in this weekend’s Leinster final.
McGrath used it frequently when he was manager of Fermanagh, and then his very next appointment was with Louth. In both counties, he had use for the quote attributed to Nelson Mandela.
But for Louth as they look at this fixture, it already has been done. They have beaten Dublin in games at all levels.
Here, we take a look at some examples.
Louth 2-9 Dublin 1-7
1957 Leinster final
Two years hence, Dublin were in the All-Ireland final but were on the end of a defeat to Kerry.
Louth had made it to the decider by beating Carlow, Wexford and then Kildare in the semi-final, while Dublin had crushed Longford and Wicklow on the way.
On the same weekend as a fierce Soviet Uprising in Budapest, Louth shocked the football world on a murky and wet evening with 30,234 present. Will there be that crowd on Sunday?
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Perhaps shock is too strong a description also, Louth having won the same title as recently as 1953.
The football was fierce and, allowing for the down-playing and withering underestimating of the time, fairly filthy with plenty of off-the-ball action.
Jim McDonnell was the main man for Louth, helping himself to 2-2, while they went on beat Tyrone in the All-Ireland semi-final, before accounting for Cork in the final for their third and final Sam Maguire success.
Louth 1-8 Dublin 0-9
1973 Leinster second round
There was a time, believe it or not, when Dublin played the odd game out of the county. This Louth win was a replay, with both games being staged at Pairc Tailteann, Navan.
A crowd of 10,000 travelled to Meath to watch the Wee County earn their victory. The high point of the game was a goal from Eugene Sheelan, with Damien Reid helping himself to six points.
As it happened, this was the point when some in Dublin football circles shouted ‘Stop!’
County board Chairman Jimmy Grey approached Kevin Heffernan. Dublin played in the next four All-Ireland finals, winning three of them.
Louth 0-9 Dublin 1-5
1996, 4 February NFL
A game played when the Dublin team were still in full party mode having landed their first All-Ireland title in a dozen years, the previous September, this was a nothing result in a nothing competition that ran forever.
Joe McNally Baller.
What was notable however, was the physical descriptions of the Dublin players, in particular the returning Joe McNally, a star of previous Dublin teams who had fallen off the radar just when he should have been reaching his peak. In fact, he won an All-Star at just 19.
‘Rumour has it that McNally weighs 19 stones just now. Certainly, his girth stretches Arnott’s sky blue fabric to perilous extremes but there remains a savvy, an intelligence to his movement that discourages ridicule.’
Louth 1-13 Dublin 1-9
2024, 23 April, Leinster U20 championship
If the current senior squad are seeking inspiration, they could do worse than look to the younger versions of themselves when they pulled off a rare win over Dublin in underage football.
Conor McKeown and Liam Flynn celebrate Louth's U20 win over Dublin.
A Sean Reynolds goal in the first half had Louth 1-6 to 0-7 up at the break. Managed by Fergal Reel of Armagh, Louth kept the effort going all the way through the second half to deny Dublin their 11th consecutive place in the provincial decider.
Louth went on to the final, where they were beaten by Meath.