When Castletown defeated Wolfe Tones after a replay in the All-County A League Div. 2 final late last year they must have really started to believe that 2005 would be their year and that an eagerly-awaited Intermediate Football Championship title was just around the corner. By Paul Clarke. Tones had eliminated Castletown from the championship race at the quarter-final stage after extra-time en route to outright success and when Castletown got the better of them in that league decider they were gaining a measure of compensation and elevating themselves to Div. 1 where the standard of football is that much higher. Castletown haven't won the Intermediate Championship since 1976 and, unfortunately, their latest bid for glory 29 years later met with disappointment when they were eliminated at the quarter-final stage by Duleek. They had also exited the competition at the same hurdle in 2003 when they went under to Carnaross, so that particular obstacle is proving a difficult one to negotiate. However, they are undoubtedly one of the most consistent teams in the intermediate grade and it will be something of a surprise if they don't make the breakthrough in the not too distant future. Castletown, managed by former Cortown player Kit Henry, were drawn in group B of the championship, with the other big guns in the section likely to be Nobber, Carnaross and Ballivor. Drumree, Drumconrath, Oldcastle and Donaghmore/Ashbourne completed the group. Ballivor, back down in the intermediate ranks for the second year after their demotion from the senior grade after just one year in 2003, provided the first round opposition at Athboy and Castletown made the winning start they were looking for when they edged home by 1-8 to 0-8, thanks largely to a goal from Keith Ginnity which boosted them to a 1-3 to 0-4 interval lead. The second half was very close, but Castletown shaded it by 0-5 to 0-4 and that was sufficient to leave them a goal clear at the finish. Drumconrath were next up for Castletown in the second round at Kilmainhamwood and they survived the first half sending off of Brendan Carry to earn a draw (0-7 each). The teams were also level (0-2 each) at the interval, but Drumconrath dominated the third quarter, before Castletown edged ahead. However, the Drums secured a deserved share of the points when Wayne Reilly slotted over a superb long range point from a free. A feature of the Castletown performance was a mighty point from a free by their goalkeeper Jonathan Ginnity. Carnaross put a dent in Castletown's qualification hopes when they won the third round meeting of the sides at Moynalty by 3-8 to 1-4, thus repeating their quarter-final success when the sides clashed at the same venue in the '03 championship. The losers held a 1-2 to 0-2 half-time lead, with Bernard Gargan getting the goal, and they were ahead by 1-4 to 0-4 at the three-quarter stage, but with Ollie Murphy in inspirational form Carnaross battled back and scored 3-4 in the last quarter, with Murphy putting the icing on the cake with a brilliant goal. After that setback, Castletown remained unbeaten in the group stages and took advantage of Oldcastle's wastefulness when beating them by 1-10 to 1-8 in the fourth round at Kells. Oldcastle kicked eight wides in the first half and added nine more in the second to ruin their chances. They still managed to lead by 1-5 to 0-5 at the break, but Castletown managed to get back to level terms early in the second half. Oldcastle, however, pushed two points ahead, but a goal from substitute Kenny Smith aided Castletown significantly and they were two points clear at the final whistle. Castletown's second draw of the championship came in the fifth round when they were held by Nobber (0-8 each) in a tight and absorbing encounter at Syddan. Three points from Brian Farrell gave Nobber an early advantage, but Castletown bounced back to lead by 0-5 to 0-4 at the interval. Nobber were on top for much of the second half and managed to edge ahead, but Liam Clarke had the final say when he pointed in injury time to secure a draw for Castletown. A goal from Damien Ginnity was the final and decisive score of Castletown's sixth round meeting with Donaghmore/Ashbourne at Seneschalstown and secured a 3-6 to 1-10 victory for his side. Kenny Smith and Alan Smyth were on the mark with first half goals for Castletown and they led by double scores (2-2 to 0-4) at the interval. However, Donaghmore/Ashbourne battled their way back into contention, before Ginnity struck with that all-important goal to secure both points. Drumree, who were ultimately to suffer the misery of demotion to the junior ranks when they lost an IFC relegation play-off to Slane, were Castletown's opponents in the last round of qualification matches at Simonstown and Castletown secured the expected victory and their place in the quarter-finals with a 1-18 to 2-3 success. The Drumree men made a good start to the game and led by 1-1 to 0-1 after seven minutes, but Castletown hit back to hold a 1-7 to 1-2 advantage at the interval, with their goal coming from Kenny Smith. Drumree were on target with a second goal five minutes after the change of ends, but Castletown pushed clear again with a succession of points and were 12 clear at the end. Castletown had accomplished their first big goal of the championship and reached the last eight, but in their way stood a Duleek team which had lost the final to Wolfe Tones the previous autumn and which was bidding for a fifth successive appearance in the semi-finals. Things were looking quite good for Castletown when they led by the minimum (0-7 to 0-6) at the interval, but they fell away in the third quarter, during which they suffered a big blow with the dismissal of substitute Derek Clarke in the 38th minute. They endured a long barren spell without a score as Duleek pushed ahead, but Barry Smyth brought some relief when he notched their first point for over half an hour. Castletown stayed in the hunt as Dunshaughlin referee Jim Smith played eight minutes of injury time and they must have entertained some hope of a rescue mission when Brendan Carry was bundled over as he raced through. However, Barry Smyth's close range free was deflected over the bar for a point and Duleek were still in the championship race, while Castletown were out for another year. Club secretary Pat McMahon reflected on Castletown's Intermediate Championship campaign and viewed that quarter-final hurdle as an obstacle that is proving very difficult to negotiate. "I suppose it probably boiled down to a lack of commitment on our own behalf and a certain lack of self-belief," he commented. "We can make it through to the quarter-finals of the championship, but we seem to struggle after that. We tend to look good for half an hour in those games, but then a lack of self-belief appears to set in." McMahon must have looked on with renewed optimism a year ago when Castletown made amends for their championship reversal against Wolfe Tones by getting the better of the high-flying Kilberry/Gibbstown side in the A League Div. 2 final. At the time it appeared to be the perfect boost and afforded the team the opportunity to move up a notch and play their football in the top section where the action is that much more competitive. "Last year we raised our game in the IFC quarter-final against Wolfe Tones but, unfortunately, we lost narrowly after extra-time which was disappointing. We played very well in the drawn league final against them and beat them in the replay. We were on a real high then and looking forward to playing Div. 1 football in 2005. "I suppose it's hard to put a finger on it, why we haven't been able to advance beyond the quarter-final stages of the championship." However, hope springs eternal and when winter turns to spring and the championship draws for 2006 have been made, Castletown will again be on most short lists to figure prominently in the race to become a senior club again. But does McMahon think the present Castletown panel is strong enough to mount a serious challenge for honours? "No panel is ever strong enough," he said. "You basically always need additions to your panel to strengthen it. But, that said, I would be hopeful for the future. We have good young lads coming through, like Jonathan Ginnity, the Meath minor goalkeeper, and Gerard Farrelly. They look like very promising players for the future." LOTTO BOOST Castletown's is the only club ground in the county to have a stand and what a blessing it can be when mother nature decides to shower us with some of the wet stuff. And that stand at the picturesque venue is set for a facelift thanks to a E50,000 grant which the club received from the National Lottery. The money will be used to refurbish the roof and provide invalid toilets. Tweet

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