For Annaghminnon, the 2006 Louth JFC was a tale of two routs. They opened their campaign with a thumping victory over Wolfe Tones but departed the equation when going down heavily to group winners Westerns. In between, the Rovers produced a credible display against champions-elect St Kevins, a performance that suggests they can hold their own against the best junior outfits in the Wee County. That's what David Kellett - who doubles up as a player and committee member - is hoping for anyway. Annaghminnon Rovers' entire season hinged on a two-week spell in August. The Stonetown men had eleven points to spare in their first group game in the 2006 Louth junior football championship, hitting the ground running as they recorded a facile 3-10 to 1-5 victory over Wolfe Tones at Ardee on Sunday August 13. But this was as good as it got. One more win would have been sufficient to extend the Reds' involvement in the knockout competition but, unfortunately, Group A defeats to St Kevins and Westerns (both of whom went on to contest the decider) on successive weekends meant that Annaghminnon's year was effectively over. Rovers couldn't have asked for a better start to their championship programme than that comfortable win over Tones. Not only did they get two priceless points on the board early, they also restricted their opponents to just two scores from play over the course of the hour. It looked like anything but a formality when the Drogheda club found the net after just two minutes, but Annaghminnon were soon back in contention when Tony Martin raised a green flag after excellent work from Aidan Kerr, Declan Lambe and Christopher Hughes. Further goals from substitute Brian Pepper and Daniel Holland confirmed Annaghminnon's superiority and the Stonetown boys found themselves within touching range of the knockout phase. Of course, Wolfe Tones are not without their problems and tougher tests awaited, but it was still an ideal start and hopes were high in the clubhouse. Annaghminnon carried their good form into the second round outing against St Kevins and were unfortunate to lose to the eventual junior champions by 2-9 to 2-5 at Tallanstown five days later. Kevins had 1-2 on the board before Annaghminnon got going, and Rovers trailed by 2-3 to 1-4 at the break (Tony Martin got the goal). Eugene Kellett's major drew the sides level on 2-4 apiece and Martin edged the losers ahead with a '45'. That was to be Annaghminnon's last score and they conceded four decisive points after Niall Matthews' 48th-minute dismissal. Having been practically inactive for most of the year, Rovers completed their hectic programme of three championship matches inside a fortnight when they squared up to Westerns at Louth village on Saturday August 26. Annaghminnon began briskly with three points in as many minutes from Padraig Murray, Tony Martin and Niall Matthews and were still level on 0-5 apiece at the short whistle. But a complete collapse thereafter saw the Reds lose by 1-19 to 0-7. On the evidence of their disastrous second-half showing, Annaghminnon could have no arguments about their elimination. Commenting on the club's current status within the greater scheme of things, David Kellett says: "Hopefully things will work out better next year." Certainly, there are glimmers of hope to be taken from 2006: "We started our championship campaign against the Tones and beat them well. It was a game we were dreading, to be honest, because we hadn't played them all year and we didn't know what to expect. It was a journey into unknown territory and we were delighted to come out with the two points. "After that, we thought we would do better. Our next game was against the Kevins in Tallanstown. They started well but we came back into it and led by four points with 15 minutes to go. We ran out of steam, though. It was disappointing because we would have been through to a semi-final if we'd won." Annaghminnon could still force a play-off by winning their final group game: "We felt that we had a chance against the Westerns because we could always put it up to them down the years. The game was played in Louth village on a lovely evening and we got off to a flyer. But they came back to level at 0-5 each by half time. In the second half, they destroyed us. We couldn't get going at all. They seemed to be more up for it than we were and everything we did in the second half went wrong." And that was more or less the end of Annaghminnon Rovers' year… "We played the Fechins on the first Saturday of October and that was our first game in the league since June. We were going well enough early in the year and had a couple of good wins in the Kevin Mullen Shield. Aidan Leonard had the team very fit but then with no league games and a bit of misfortune in the championship, fellas just dwindled away. Towards the end of the year, we were struggling big time. How we are supposed to keep a small club up and running when we have no games is beyond me…" It really is a ridiculous situation and clubs definitely need more protection from the County Board. There's no reason for not playing a game every week over the summer. The good news for now is that next year's junior championship and league should be far more competitive, with twelve teams involved. This in turn should mean more quality games for all concerned: "Hopefully next year will be different," David says. "There will be more games and that should get everybody interested in training hard. "The way the junior championship was, with seven teams, we were fed up playing the same teams over and over. You could play the same team four or five times a year, often twice in a week. We're all looking forward to some fresh challenges and hopefully the overall improvement in the standard of junior football will lift us all." Annaghminnon's Junior 2 team also acquitted itself reasonably well in 2006, giving vital match experience to the young lads coming through to stake their claims for first team places in the coming seasons. Furthermore, the club demonstrated its immense value to the local community when stepping in to offer its facilities while the local national school was closed down. Annaghminnon have received a substantial grant to develop their clubhouse (with plans for two new dressing rooms, a referee's room, new showers etc.) but this work has been put on hold while the club accommodates the students from the local school, who are using the clubhouse as a temporary school while Stonetown NS is being upgraded. A nice gesture and one that certainly shows Annaghminnon Rovers GAA club in a very good light! "It's a great club, with no conflict whatsoever," David continues. "Everyone is pulling together, trying to make sure the club moves in the right direction. "We're looking forward to next year and hopefully things will improve. I'd say we were winning about 80% of last year's games at half time, but we tended to fade away, especially in the last 15 minutes. We weren't able to finish teams off but, with a bit more sharpness and self-belief, this team can still go close to winning honours." Gerard Pepper, Colm Martin and Seamus Quinn were over the first team in '06, while Seamus, Niall Russell and Aidan Kerr took charge of the seconds. Aidan was also club captain for the year and was an inspirational figure all year, displaying commitment and application above and beyond the call of duty. The Annaghminnon Rovers side that scooped two precious championship points at Pairc Mhuire in mid-August: Shane Russell; Alan Finnegan, Kevin McKeown, Barry Allen; Seamus Byrne, Thomas Martin, Brian Doherty; Aidan Kerr (0-1), Niall Matthews; Tony Martin (1-0), Christopher Hughes, David Kellett; Daniel Holland (1-0), Declan Lambe (0-3), Eugene Kellett (0-6). Sub: Brian Pepper (1-0) Tweet

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