Try as they may, the Wolfe Tones stickmen just can't seem to make the all-important breakthrough. The beaten 2000 championship finalists reached both the league and championship deciders this time around but once more finished the season without senior silverware. August saw Wolfe Tones' hurlers return to the SHC final for a second successive year but for the second time in a row Knockbridge beat the Drogheda outfit on the big day, 0-16 to 2-6. Wolfe Tones had been much more impressive en route to the final but ferocious weather conditions tampered with the Wee County's hurling showpiece and seemed to have a more adverse effect on the Tones. In September, they were back in another county final - this time the senior league decider against Naomh Moninne - but unfortunately the outcome was similar as they fell to a six-point defeat, 0-12 to 0-6. The double scores losing margin spelt further misery for the luckless Tones who have been knocking loudly on the door of late but all to no avail thus far. The teams were level at half time but the wheels came off the wagon thereafter on what proved another fruitless and frustrating day for Wolfe Tones HC. Championship Wolfe Tones proved that their 2000 progression to the final had been no fluke when they easily booked their passage to a second consecutive decider by virtue of a 5-12 to 0-4 trouncing of Pearse Og in the first semi-final. Most hurling matches in Louth appear to be held at The Grove these days and this one was no exception, the south county outfit coasting to victory as Ollie Kelly and Conor Moore bagged a brace of goals apiece. Knockbridge, meanwhile, only managed to scrape past Naomh Moninne in the second semi', so there was ever reason for the Tones - who had prepared exceptionally well - to be hopeful of improving on the 2000 performance. With county talent in abundance to call upon in the likes of Aidan Carter, Dee McCarthy, David Black, Tony Corcoran, Niall McEneaney and Paul Dyas, they had every reason to be feeling confident about their prospects, even against the county's new dominant force. The Mooney Glass SHC final was characterised by atrocious weather conditions. The pummelling wind and rain made it virtually impossible to play good hurling and it was the Tones who struggled most to adapt to the adverse conditions. They fell too far behind early on and, despite a late rally which yielded two goals, were never able to recover from the stark half-time deficit. While Knockbridge seemed able to pick off scores at will (they scored 17 times, 16 from play and had as many as nine different scorers), Wolfe Tones has an off day in the shooting department and couldn't find the target even when enjoying territorial superiority, which was the case in particular during the third quarter. Perhaps it would have been a different story had the Drogheda side had the wind at their backs for the first half as the nature in which their opponents set about building a lead appeared to sap their morale. The Tones struggled playing into the face of the storm and were eight points adrift by the time they opened their account in the 18th minute with a converted free from Ollie Kelly. Three minutes later, Kelly and Neil Sands combined to set up Declan Power and the centre forward made no mistake in firing over his side's second score. Knockbridge replied with two more points before Kelly pulled another one back for Wolfe Tones to leave it 0-10 to 0-3. However, it was the 'bridge who finished the half stronger and they hit four more unanswered points to establish a commanding interval advantage of 0-14 to 0-3. Even though they outscored the defending champions by 2-3 to 0-3 in the second period, Wolfe Tones were never realistically going to claw back such a massive deficit against a quality side. The received the boost they needed within seconds of the resumption when Kelly landed his third free following a foul on Power. Despite a long spell of good possession, they failed to convert the good work into scores and it was Knockbridge who scored next. They could only manage points from Paul Dyas and Niall McEneaney inside the next 15 minutes and the game was effectively over as a contest long before it spilled into its final quarter. Knockbridge didn't muster a single score in the closing twelve minutes but it became clear that it wasn't going to be Tones' day when Kelly uncharacteristically fluffed a penalty in the 54th minute. To their credit, they refused to lie down and Conor Moore crashed home a goal a minute later. They continued to pile forward and the Knockbridge 'keeper was forced into fine saves from both Kelly and substitute Tony Corcoran before Moore netted his second goal in the last attack of the game. It was a disappointing result but defenders Aidan Carter, Mossie O'Connor and David Black as well as goalkeeper Timmy Lowry all performed well on a day not conducive to good hurling. League There was a 6pm throw-in at The Grove for the 2001 Louth SHL final on Saturday September 15th. The finalists played out a low-scoring draw in the opening round at Drogheda in June, before each recording victories over Pearse Og and Knockbridge to finish joint top of the table. As Knockbridge had collected the Tom Rice Cup in each of the two preceding seasons, this was seen as an ideal opportunity for Wolfe Tones to plunder some silverware and make amends for back-to-back county final defeats. Unfortunately, however, their 'final hoodoo' struck again and yet again they made the short trip home to Drogheda along the N1 with their tails between their legs. Things turned extremely pear-shaped for the south county side in the second half and, having gone in on level terms at the interval, they subsequently plummeted to a soul-destroying 0-12 to 0-6 defeat. They were still well in touch with 18 minutes remaining, trailing only by two points but the concession of an unanswered four scores in the closing stage of the game condemned them to more heartache. Moninne made the better start and quickly led by two points but Wolfe Tones replied impressively with a brace inside a minute from Ollie Kelly, the second coming at the end of a fine solo run into the heart of the Moninne defence. Exchanges were tense and frenetic and it wasn't until three minutes before the break that Kelly grabbed the match's next score to put his team in front for the first time. A late Moninne free saw the teams part the fray on 0-3 apiece at the end of a low-key and uneventful opening half hour. Within six minutes of the resumption Moninne led by double scores following three unanswered scores and then Aidan Carter - deployed on the forty - found space to fire over a mighty score from the right wing and give his team some hope. Moninne register two more scores to led 0-8 to 0-4 but back came the Tones with points from Kelly and Carter to move right back within striking distance. But they failed to score again and a season that had promised much fizzled to an anti-climactic conclusion. Even though losing the league decider was a blow, one suspects that when they look back on the events of Season 2001, it is the championship final defeat that will haunt Wolfe Tones most. Wolfe Tones, 2001 Louth SHC finalists: Timmy Lowry; Mossie O'Connor, John Tobin, David Black; Paul Dyas, Aidan Carter, Eoin McEneaney; Diarmuid McCarthy, Alan Mines; Niall McEneaney, Declan Power, Ivor Somerville; Ollie Kelly, Conor Moore, Neil Sands. Subs: Tony Corcoran for Mines, John Carter for Sands. Tweet

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