O'Connells celebrated their 75th anniversary in style in 2004. Appropriately, they took their place in senior football and did themselves proud. It was a year to remember. O'Connells have every reason to celebrate 2004. There exists just cause to look back on the year with pride. It was a landmark season in the Kilsaran/Castlebellingham club's history. Not alone did O'Connells celebrate their 75th anniversary, they also participated in senior football for the first time in 75 years (O'Connells actually faced Wolfe Tones in a senior final in 1929 - their formative year - but hadn't played in the top grade since). Indeed, O'Connells' 'return' to the top table was utterly memorable. The Maroons performed infinitely better than could have been expected and almost pulled off the shock of the year against defending champions St Patricks in the quarter-final stage of the SFC. The Pats finally came through - shaken and stirred - but O'Connells had made their mark on the 2004 Louth senior football championship. O'Connells did brilliantly to emerge from Group D of the SFC, level at the top of the table with 2003 finalists St Marys, on four points apiece. In the first round of group matches, O'Connells were pipped by Kilkerley, 2-9 to 2-6 at Ardee on Sunday May 23. The Castlebellingham/Kilsaran combination enjoyed better luck in their next SFC outing when beating St Josephs by 1-12 to 1-9 at Knockbridge on Friday June 18 - their first senior championship victory in 75 years! O'Connells booked their place in the knock-outs with an excellent 0-11 to 0-10 defeat of the previous year's beaten finalists St Marys on Friday July 9. At the quarter-final stage, O'Connells came up against defending champions St Patricks and almost caused a major upset. The Lordship men just about earned passage to the semi-final stage when they sneaked the decision by 1-15 to 0-11 in an evenly-contested quarter-final at Dowdallshill on Friday July 16. The final scoreline was flattering to the winners as the Maroons made them fight all the way and could well have won had not a few golden goalscoring opportunities gone a-begging. With Mark Stanfield and Stefan White missing nothing, the senior rookies threatened to progress to the semi-finals. Coming towards the end of the third quarter, the sides were level at 0-8 apiece, and there was only a point in it when White fired over a 59th-minute free, 0-12 to 0-11. But the Pats' greater experience told and they went on to dominate the five minutes of injury time to end O'Connells' dream run. It took a long time for the dream of senior football to materialise and a great deal of blood, sweat and tears was shed along the way. In 2003, O'Connells suffered a disappointing intermediate championship semi-final defeat to Oliver Plunketts, having come through the group stage of the competition with a 100% record. From there, however, they switched their attention to the league to clinch promotion is spectacular fashion. Sitting in third place, behind Dundalk Gaels and Plunketts, they knew that senior football was within reach. O'Connells put themselves in the driving seat when they beat Oliver Plunketts by 2-8 to 1-9 in their third-last game. Winning their final two games would now virtually guarantee O'Connells promotion for the first time, as they would finish second to the Gaels, who had already gained promotion via the IFC. While things never went quite according to that script, O'Connells still got there in the end. Their penultimate outing was against none other than the Gaels themselves and the Maroons scored a creditable draw. The final game was against fellow promotion contenders Naomh Fionnbarra, who still had another game to play to set up a winner-takes-all last round match. Fortunately for O'Connells, however, Dreadnots secured a timely victory over the Togher men to put them out of the running for a top-flight place and Sean O'Mahonys also produced a surprise win over the Plunketts to guarantee the Castlebellingham/Kilsaran club promotion with a game in hand. Club secretary Michael McDonaill reflects: "I remember being at the Dreadnots-Finbarrs game and ringing our spies in Drogheda for updates on the other game. The Dreadnots game ended a couple of minutes earlier than Drogheda. The feeling when the news came through left me numb but proud that at last all out dreams had come true." Two-thousand-and-four and senior football saw the departure of manager David Reilly, mainly for the reason that O'Connells would now be going up against his own club, neighbours Stabannon Parnells, with whom he enjoyed so much success as a player. It was an understandable decision from the outgoing manager, and one that O'Connells fully respected. They thanked him for his hard work and commitment and wished him well. The club went into 2004 knowing they were under a lot of pressure to consolidate their hard-earned senior standing. They would have to bring in a coach who could provide experience and encouragement, someone who would be able to get 100% from every player, 1-30. The search took O'Connells to Termonfeckin and one Aidan Green. Aidan had taken Mattock Rangers to the senior county final in 2001, wherein the Collon men were pipped by Newtown Blues. He instantly spotted a similarity between O'Connells and the Mattock team he'd managed and was clearly the right man for the job. It proved an inspired choice. There was a wonderful turn-out at the players meeting in February, where Aidan outlined his plans and expectations for the new year - these were to consolidate senior status and to enjoy the outings in the championship. Both would be accomplished. Aidan also unveiled Ian McGrory and the long-serving Martin O'Hanrahan as his selectors. The first senior league game was a baptism of fire against 2003 senior championship finalists St Marys at Ardee (who would go on to easily win Division 1B outright). It was a historic day for the club and the team on duty. Stefan White - who had rejoined O'Connells in 2003 after almost a score of years playing elsewhere - was named as club captain for the year. White's experience and ability - along with that was Mark Stanfield - were major factors in O'Connells' progress throughout the year. Defeat on the opening day hammered home a few realities about the enormity of the task at hand. Much more work would need to be done if O'Connells were going to survive. The team played with a greater sense of purpose and conviction next day out and recorded a deserved home victory over Naomh Mairtin. Suddenly full of believe, they followed up with more wins over Dundalk Gaels, Kilkerley Emmets and Naomh Malachi. They had acclimatised! And so to the championship: the draw for the group stage wasn't exactly unkind, pitting the newcomers against Kilkerley, the Marys and the Joes. The big one here was against their Dromiskin neighbours and keen rivals St Josephs. Defeat to Kilkerley dampened the mood somewhat but victory over the Joes brought a smile back to everybody's face. O'Connells had registered their first ever senior championship victory and the knock-outs were within touching distance. When St Marys were beaten in the final group game the entire county looked on in disbelief as O'Connells took their place in the knock-out stage of the premier competition. Joe Ward was only three hours away… It was a dream quarter-final pairing, against none other than St Patricks, the defending Louth senior football champions. Of course, nobody gave the underdogs a chance but they almost pulled off one of the biggest shocks ever in the Wee County. Had Lady Luck smiled more favourably on O'Connells at St Brigid's Park on the evening of Friday July 16, they could very conceivably have advanced to the last four. Certainly, the seven-point winning margin was extremely flattering to the Lordship men, who only managed to pull away in injury time. Still, it was a tremendous effort from the Maroons, for whom county man Mark Stanfield was simply immense. Also, some of the club's younger stars - Colm Kearney, Dean Stanfield and Brendan Tuite - excelled. Returning to the league, with tails up, O'Connells knew they were good enough to retain their senior status. Duly, they obliged. Two-thousand-and-four could hardly have got off to a better start for O'Connells. The club began the year in style by winning the previous year's deferred Division 4C league final with a 1-7 to 2-2 victory over Naomh Malachi at Louth village. This meant they would participate in the Division 4B league in '04. It was a boost for the club as reserve football is a breeding ground for stars of the future, who can gain vital experience. Special word of praise must go to manager Norman McDonnell and selectors Declan Byrne, Derek Walsh and Stuart Reynolds for their continuing efforts at this level. Underage development is vital to the future of any club. O'Connells are blessed to have an excellent structure in place from U10 level up to minor. Youth officer Patrick Kiernan and his committee work tirelessly to ensure that the youngsters receive the best training available, as well as the best gear, often from a limited budget. These teams are looked after by the likes of Seamus Cairns, Sean Geeney, Brian Heaney, Leslie Walsh and many others, all of whom give of their time selflessly. A vast amount of sponsorship has been forthcoming to the club in its 75th year. Official sponsor Wogan Interiors deserve special mention, for providing new jerseys this year and for their continued support. Standard Brands, Castlebellingham also supplied new club bags for 2004. Kilsaran Credit Union sponsored tracksuits for the senior team and provided the U12s and U14s with jerseys. Such support is vital and is greatly appreciated. The year also saw O'Connells get their official website up and running, which can be visited at www.o'connellsgfc.com. This is crammed full of match reports, weekly lotto updates, a picture gallery and a club history etc. PJ Byrnes Pub in Castlebellingham sponsors the site. A special word of thanks to Therese McDonnell, who posts all the information and works tirelessly on the project. In conjunction with the club's 75th anniversary celebrations, O'Connells held a special dinner dance and novelty weekend over October Bank Holiday weekend. Congratulations also to Mark and Rosaleen Stanfield who were married on August 6 2004. While they will be delighted with their performances in the top grade in 2004, O'Connells' long-term ambitions are even greater, as the club secretary concludes: "If we can secure ourselves and give that little bit more commitment that's needed, we can maybe bring a Joe Ward to the club in the not-too-distant future. The players are there, the belief is there, and for all who passed away over the years, the maroon and white flag will always fly high in Castlebellingham." Tweet

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