When Naomh Malachi won the Intermediate Championship for the first time in their history in September 2002 many in the county, and beyond, rejoiced in their success. By Eunan Whyte. The Courtbane club had been knocking on the door of the senior grade for some time but despite their best efforts they were unable to add the intermediate success to the junior title that was won as far back as 1979. Few could begrudge the club their day in the sun and the celebrations that began in St. Brigid's Park after the victory over Geraldines continued for some time. It was a memorable time for those involved with Naomh Malachi as just a week earlier they had been firmly behind Armagh as Joe Kernan's side made history by bringing the Sam Maguire to the Orchard County for the first time. The 'double' was completed a week later, and while Naomh Malachi were determined to enjoy the occasion, they were equally determined to make their mark in the higher grade. The Courtbane men knew they would be in for a difficult time on their first appearance in the senior grade, but having waited so long to get there, were determined to make their stay an extended one. There were some who questioned the Malachi's ability to cope with the higher standard, but those doubters were forgetting the club's famed fighting spirit that was so much part of their intermediate success. From the outset, the side was not going to be content with enjoying a brief spell in senior, as they set their sights of consolidating their position with a strong league campaign. The players took heart from some encouraging displays in the ACC Cup and there was reason to celebrate when a win over St. Joseph's in that competition gave them a first ever victory at that level. However, a more important success was to follow and it is a game that will deservedly get much attention the next time the club history is updated. On April 27th at Dunleer, Naomh Malachi defeated Lannleire to record their first ever senior league win and let the county know they had finally arrived. One player who will take much satisfaction from that game is Ronan McElroy who started the game as sub but came on to score a hat trick. Naomh Malachi were leading by 0-6 to 0-5 at the break, but McElroy took centre-stage with a three-goal burst in the third quarter to put his side firmly in command. Lannleire did put the pressure on late in the game but the Courtbane men's greater hunger saw them hang on for a famous win. Scorers for Malachis on that memorable day were, Ronan McElroy (3-1), Michéal Murtagh (0-2), Feidhlim Daly (0-2), Gerard Murphy, Colin Murtagh and Gerry Hamill 0-1 each. The team lined out as follows: Aidan McArdle, Gearoid Wills, Michéal Kane, Francis McArdle, Peter McShane, Aidan Murphy, Stephen Burns, Padraig Leneghan, Michéal Daly, Gerry Murphy, Ruairi Daly, Colin Murtagh, Feidhlim Daly, Gerry Hamill, Michéal Murtagh. Sub: Ronan McElroy for A. Murphy. Not surprisingly, club Chairman, Damien Woods, saw that victory as a very important moment for the club, and one that proved the inspiration for them to achieve their goal for the season. After coming up from the Intermediate ranks, Damien knew that survival in senior was the objective and all at the club were delighted when that was secured. As a result, he was looking forward to the coming challenges in senior and felt the club could now build on that achievement and set their targets higher over the coming year. "That win over Lannleire was magnificent for everyone at the club and it really set us up for the remainder of the season. "At that stage it was a case of 'all or nothing' for both sides as neither of us had a point up to then. We had lost out to St. Joseph's in our opening game, and then suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of Glyde Rangers. As a result it was a big one against Lannleire but when we came through that it gave the lads confidence for the rest of the campaign. "Despite being on a high after winning the Intermediate Championship, we knew we were facing an uphill task in senior football. First of all, our manager, Mickey McConville, took over at Crossmaglen and replacing him was a big job. "Fortunately, we were able to bring in a man of the calibre of Jim Finnegan, who was just finished with the Armagh U-21 team and he proved to be a great asset. "Alongside him we had the continuity with Thomas Conlon, Peter Rogers and Declan Woods remaining as selectors from last year, and they did another fine job. "We were very fortunate to have a group of very committed players who were not content to go through the motions in senior football, but from the very start were keen to survive. "As a result we focused on the league and getting enough points to stay out of the bottom two, so we weren't concerned about the championship. It wasn't until after the championship was over that we really began to put in a massive effort. It usually works the other way around, but we were coming in to form after going out of the Joe Ward." That policy began to pay off for the Courtbane club and after a good run of results, found themselves competing at the top half of the table. "Our second win came against Hunterstown and when we got our third victory against Kilkerley, we really believed that we would survive." After that, Damien was delighted with the attitude of all involved as, rather than being content to survive, they began to look towards promotion. "It was great to be involved in the promotion race and to make it in to the top two would have been on a par with winning the Intermediate Championship." While hopes of continuing to move up were still very much alive going into the final three games, Damien was delighted to be rubbing shoulders with the senior teams for at least another year. Securing their place in the top grade was a source of joy to all involved and according to the chairman, particularly pleasing given that they achieved it despite having numerous players unavailable, while the club was also rocked by the death of Keith Rogers early in the year. "It is a great achievement for us when you consider how many of the championship-winning team were missing for long periods of the season. "For various reasons we had to do without the likes of Aidan Hoey, Sean Gogarty, Redmond O'Neill, Darragh Greene, Mark Gogarty, Michéal Kane, Bernard Casey, Ronan Lynch, Edward Laverty, Gearoid Wills and Padraig Leneghan." With many of those players coming back in for next season where they will be joined by a group of very talented young players, the Chairman is confident of a bright future at the club. "We got a great boost this year when both Aidan Murphy and Darragh Greene played on the Louth minor team that reached the Leinster semi-final, while Ronan McElroy was involved with the junior team. "We are lucky to have a good crop of young players coming through such as Stephen Burns, Gerard and Eamon Murphy, Ciaran Rogers and Shane Rooney, so there is plenty of hope for the future." They will be hoping to benefit from the experienced members of the squad who Damien believes learned a lot this year. "It was great to see the likes of Michéal Daly, Ronan McElroy and Ruairi Daly come of age in senior football and they did a lot to keep us up when we were missing so many players." Naomh Malachi girls strike gold at last! Ladies football in the Wee County witnessed a definite 'changing of the guard' when the girls of Naomh Malachi emphatically put years of anguish and frustration behind them by winning the 2003 Louth ladies senior football championship. Naomh Malachi famously captured the 2003 Louth senior ladies football championship when accounting for traditional giants Cooley Kickhams in an entertaining final at Pairc Clan Na Gael on Sunday August 31st, smashing their county final hoodoo with a stunning four-point success. So many times in the past Naomh Malachi's ladies have caved in at the sight of the Cooley Kickhams jersey. They were left waiting in the wings for years as the peninsula side went on to make a huge impact at provincial and national levels. It was extremely frustrating, because there was never much between the teams, but Cooley seemed to enjoy a psychological edge. Whatever advantage the Kickhams were perceived to have held was categorically blown out of the water in the 2003 county final, however - the Sheelagh outfit won by 3-9 to 2-8. After making an amazing start with an early scoring spree, the winners never looked back. It was a landmark win for the Malachis who had lost four county finals on the trot. Cooley, on the other hand, have been the dominant force in ladies football in the Wee County for many years and were gunning for a sixth successive SFC. Malachis never looked like losing the final from the moment Jennifer Mulligan bulged the net after nine minutes and the winners' scoring heroine on the day was full forward Caroline Lynch who bagged 2-2. This was the first championship match Cooley have lost in Louth since the semi-final replay defeat to St Josephs in August 1997, but they could have no complaints as they were beaten by a superior force on the day, with winning manager [Clan Na Gael clubman and former Louth footballer] Barry O'Connor getting his tactics right for the big occasion. After the game, ladies GAA President Geraldine Giles presented the cup to winning captain Orlaith Kirk, a fitting reward for the girl who has been the heart and soul of this team for a decade and also captained her county with distinction in 2003. Having lost the last four county finals to Cooley, Naomh Malachi could have been forgiven for thinking history was going to repeat itself when they fell behind to a Roisin Hanlon point after no more than 45 seconds. But they quickly gathered themselves and, as it turned out, that was the only time they trailed in the match. The response was immediate when Caroline Lynch lost her marker to register from a tight angle and the Sheelagh girls also grabbed the next two points, from close-range frees. In the ninth minute, they got their first goal: the magnificent Kirk picked out Jennifer Mulligan with a sublime crossfield ball and the corner forward made no mistake. Within four minutes, Malachis hit the net again to leave the defending champions reeling: the captain was again provider, picking up possession from Edel McKeown to feed Lynch, who in turn sent the ball crashing to the net. Cooley responded with their first goal and Kirk exchanged points with Ann Marie Murphy before Lynch got her second major - and Naomh Malachi's third! - from a 30-metre free after 23 minutes. Sheelagh had made a dream start, scoring the equivalent of 14 points during that blistering opening period. They led by 3-5 to 1-2 seven minutes from the break and, despite a spirited Cooley revival, were still 3-5 to 2-4 to the good at the short whistle. The sides scored four points apiece in the second half, as Naomh Malachi defended their advantage with ruthless efficiency. They were full value for their 3-9 to 2-8 win. This was a wonderful all-round team performance from Naomh Malachi. Corner forward Ann McDonnell picked up the Player of the Match award but the truth is any of their starting XV could have been chosen. The midfield pairing of Karen Rafferty and Edel McKeown never put a foot wrong, while full back Blanad Callan, Ciara Rafferty and centre back Sandra Lynch excelled in a well-drilled defensive unit. The industrious half forward line of Jenny Agnew, Orla Kirk and Roisin Farran had a massive influence on proceedings while, in the full forward line, Caroline Lynch and Jenny Mulligan picked off the vital scores. Naomh Malachi, 2003 Louth senior ladies football champions: Yvonne Quigley; Majella Agnew, Blanad Callan, Fiona Lennon; Lizzie McNulty, Sandra Lynch, Ciara Rafferty; Karen Rafferty, Edel McKeown (0-2); Jenny Agnew, Orlaith Kirk (0-2), Roisin Farren (0-1); Jenny Mulligan (1-1), Caroline Lynch (2-2), Ann McDonnell (0-1). Tweet

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