The Louth senior hurlers - who somehow seemed to play all their most-important games away from home - were the Wee County's outstanding intercounty campaigners in 2008. Pat Clancy's charges mounted a triple-pronged silverware attack and came away with two of the three trophies. Unfortunately, they failed to add the big one - the Nicky Rackard Cup - to the NHL Division Three and Leinster Shield crowns. While the championship final defeat at Croke Park in August ended the year on a desperate low, the Reds still had every reason to hold their heads high after a storming campaign, charged with consistency. It was Pat Clancy's second year in charge of the Louth hurlers and the Westmeath man had a vision. It involved Croke Park in August and a certain Rackard Cup; redemption after the inaugural third-tier championship final defeat of 2005. Metaphorically, the Wee County's approach to the year was shaped in a trident, with three prongs aimed towards the three main competitions they would participate in. The peripheral spikes pointed towards the national hurling league and the Leinster junior hurling shield - both connected with their targets beautifully. The central spike - the longest, sharpest and most deadly - was pointed defiantly at the most sought-after prize of all, the elusive Nicky Rackard Cup. Alas, it missed agonisingly, despite the steady aim and purposeful execution For the second time in four seasons, Louth went all the way to the final, which meant another big day out in HQ and all the pressure, hype and drama that goes hand in hand with All-Ireland final days. They had powered through to the decider, looking like men on a mission, sights set intently on a historic treble. Sligo stood where London had 36 months earlier, but the Yeats men - regular opponents of Louth's and a county they could always compete with -did not present as daunting a proposition as the Exiles had. They were beatable and Louth went to Croker full of confidence. Sadly, it wasn't to be their day and a below-par display in the biggest game of the year spelt abject disappointment for the players, management and supporters alike. Once more, a dedicated and talented bunch of hurlers had done brilliantly to put Louth hurling on the map, only to see the ultimate prize evade them at the last hurdle. While it would be easy to become downhearted upon relfection, it's worth remembering that Louth were by far the most consistent third-rung hurling county in the country in '08 and there's no reason why this crop of players can't regroup and bounce back to finally annex the All-Ireland they crave so dearly. They've played in two finals now, they know what the competition is all about, so the Wee County are well-equipped to go all the way in '09. For now, however, let's look back upon the thrilling and highly-commendable events of 2008 With two major trophies already in the bag, Louth went into the Nicky Rackard Cup full of confidence and resolve. In a rare home outing, they opened their championship account with an exciting 1-13 to 0-14 defeat of competition rookies Fingal at Dowdallshill on Saturday June 28. Trailing by seven points after 20 minutes (0-9 to 0-2), the hosts appeared to be in trouble, but they gradually gained a foothold in the game and trailed by just 0-10 to 0-7 at the short whistle. With wind advantage after the resumption, Louth continued their fightback and Ronan Byrne netted the crucial goal ten minutes from the end. Diarmuid Murphy landed nine points. There was disappointment when Louth lost to Longford by 0-15 to 0-13 at Pearse Park in their second group game but the defeat didn't prove too harmful as An Lú still qualified from the three-team 3A section, finishing second to the north Dublin team by virtue of scoring averages. The quarter-final draw handed Louth another away assignment, though they literally only had to travel up the road to face another trip into the unknown. On July 19, Non Ards (AKA South Down) provided the opposition at Pairc Esler, Newry in a game fraught with danger. The match was a real thriller and could have gone either way. In the end, Louth's greater experience and hunger told as they manfully carved out a spectacular 4-13 to 2-16 win. Shane Callan (2) and Ronan Byrne were on target with three-pointers as the winners assumed a 3-6 to 1-7 interval lead. With time crawling towards the long whistle, the home side pressed hard looking for the goal that would force extra time - but Louth stood strong in the face of the onslaught to book their semi-final place. Fingal, Monaghan and Sligo were the other three semi-finalists Louth were paired with Monaghan in their semi-final - away from home again - on Saturday, July 26. The game was originally fixed for Rooskey but was switched to Clones (Monaghan wanted to play as curtain-raiser to the Ulster SFC final the following day, but Louth were not prepared to go along with this idea), where the Wee County dug deeper than ever before to record a sensational 0-18 to 1-13 success after extra time. Diarmuid Murphy's last-gasp pointed free forced the additional 10-minute periods and the sides were still level after the first half of extra time as Monaghan landed three frees to cancel out points from Murphy (2) and Barry Duggan. The Wee County finished strongly: Shane Fennell's point put them in front for the first time in the match and Murphy added the insurance score. There was a surprise in the other 'semi' as Sligo defeated 14-man Fingal by 1-16 to 0-11 at Markievicz Park. There was much rejoicing in the Louth camp once their place in the final had been booked. The mood improved even further when it was confirmed that the final would take place in Croke Park. Of course, there was no complacency evident as a massive job remained ahead. But Louth would get their big day out on Jones Road as part of an August Bank Holiday Sunday triple bill involving Kildare V Fermanagh and Kerry V Monaghan in the All-Ireland SFC qualifiers. Perhaps not quite the platform promised to the so-called weaker counties when this competition was conceived, but a huge occasion nonetheless and a match to relish despite the ungodly 12.00am throw-in. Alas, Louth didn't produce the first-half display they needed. After they had started superbly with 1-3 inside the opening eight minutes (the goal courtesy of Sean Connolly), their opponents got on top and tore into a 2-12 to 1-5 half-time lead. Sligo full forward Keith Redmond (who amassed 1-8 from play) wreaked havoc in the defence and his goal helped the winners into nine-point supremacy with half an hour gone. Goals from Ronan Byrne and Diarmuid Murphy either side of the break kept the Leinster county ticking over but it was Sligo who finished strongest to win with plenty to spare, 3-19 to 3-10. The Reds had closed within four points going into the home straight but knew it wasn't going to be their day when veteran Paul Seevers' long-range free dropped into the net. Louth manager Pat Clancy was banned from taking his place in the dug-out for the biggest game of the year (following his harsh dismissal during a tense semi-final) and one can't help but wonder how much his influence was missed. Louth, 2008 Nicky Rackard Cup finalists: S Smith; C Kerrigan, T Teefy, B Hassett; D Callan (0-2), A Carter (0-1), J Carter; T Hilliard, S Kerrigan; S Fennell, R Byrne (1-0), G Smith (0-1); S Conroy (1-0), S Callan, D Murphy (1-6). Subs: M Kirwan, D Dunne, E McCarthy, C Connolly, P Dunne. Earlier in the year, Louth had covered themselves in glory by winning Division Three of the national hurling league. There were five teams in the division - Louth, Longford, Donegal, Tyrone and Sligo. Ironically, after the four rounds of matches, it was Sligo who propped up the table with no points following four straight defeats. Donegal were top with a 100% record, while Louth finished second with six points from a possible eight. This meant a Louth/Donegal final. The same two sides met in the first round and Donegal romped to a 1-20 to 3-8 victory on February 17. Louth hammered Sligo by 6-12 to 2-11, edged out Tyrone by two points (3-11 to 3-9), and saw off Longford (4-8 to 1-10) to confirm their place in the league final. The Division Three showcase was played in Monaghan on Sunday April 13 and Louth reversed the form of the opening round when charging to a 1-16 to 0-11 victory. Goal machine Shane Fennell - who scored a major in every round of the league - kept his perfect record intact when he found the net after only three minutes to set the Reds on their way to glory. Kevin Campbell kept Donegal in it with a series of scores but was the only player on his team to register more than once. Louth, on the other hand, were more consistent over the 70 minutes and led by 1-7 to 0-8 at the break before outscoring the losers by seven points to one in the third quarter. Captain David Dunne gave a commanding display at midfield for the Leinster county, who had substitute Paul Donohoe dismissed five minutes from the end but were already over the line by then. Louth, 2008 NHL Division Three winners: S Smyth: B Hassett, T Teefy, C Kerrigan; D Callan, A Carter, G Smyth; D Dunne (0-8), T Hilliard; D Murphy, J Carter, S Fennell (1-2); E McCarthy (0-1), S Callan (0-3), S Kerrigan. Subs: S Conroy (0-2), P Donohoe, B Duggan. At Aughrim on June 21, just a week before their Nicky Rackard Cup opener, Louth beat Wicklow by 1-16 to 1-8 at rainy Aughrim in the Leinster junior hurling shield final to bag their second piece of silverware of 2008. Having triumphed by 1-10 to 0-9 when the sides met in the group section, Wicklow were expected to repeat the dose and they looked on course when they led by 1-3 to 0-4 at the interval. But the Wee County were the superior team in a much more exciting second half and they never looked back after Man of the Match Diarmuid Murphy (1-6) scored their only goal in the 51st minute. Louth, 2008 Leinster junior hurling shield winners: S Smyth; J Carter, T Teefy, D Mulholland; D Callan, A Carter, B Hassett; T Hilliard (0-1), D Dunne (0-3); G Smyth (0-4), P Dunne, S Fennell (0-1); S Conroy, D Murphy (1-6), S Kerrigan. Subs: E McCarthy (0-1), P Donohoe, S Callan, R Byrne. Tweet

Most Read Stories