“Keenan and Bingham Lead Mitchels Charge in Junior Opener”

DKIT Sport Louth Junior Football Championship – Group 1, Round 1

John Mitchels 6-15 Dowdallshill 0-1

Venue: Protection & Prosperity Louth GAA Training Centre, Darver

John Mitchels all but secured a knockout berth in this year’s Junior Football Championship with a commanding victory over Dowdallshill in Darver.

Early goals from the lively Adam Keenan and the excellent Andrew Bingham put the Ballybaile men in control, and from there they never looked back. Keenan finished with an impressive tally of 2-3 from play, while Bingham tormented the Hill defence throughout and bagged a superb hat-trick.

The Mitchels’ attack clicked into gear in style, with John Gallagher, Gareth Kane, Bingham and Keenan contributing 5-9 between them. It was a performance that marked them out as real contenders, their movement and finishing a level above on the night.

For Dowdallshill, it was an evening of frustration. They created chances but spurned too many, both from play and placed balls, and were left with just a single point to show for their efforts. They will now turn their focus to the upcoming clash with Sean McDermotts, a game that could decide their quarter-final hopes.

Despite the heavy defeat, there were encouraging displays from Stephen King, Ray Campbell, Andy Byrne and Paul Flynn, who battled hard against the tide.

Mitchels, meanwhile, meet the Sean McDermotts next weekend, knowing victory would guarantee them top spot in Group 1.

John Mitchels team: Michael Quinn; Barry Kirk, Aaron Kane, Mikey Nulty; Conor Reilly, Jamie Durnin, John Bingham (1-2); James Clarke, Trevor Matthews (0-1); Ruairi McCann, John Gallagher (0-2), James Sands; Andrew Bingham (3-0), Gareth Kane (0-4), Adam Keenan (2-3).Subs: Cole Leavy for C. Reilly; Robbie Coyle (0-1) for J. Sands; Stephen Bingham (0-1) for A. Bingham; Sean McNeice (0-1) for J. Clarke; Liam Gorman for J. Gallagher.

Dowdallshill team: Paudie Murphy; Feidhlim O’Callaghan, James Woods, Stephen King; Ray Campbell, Andy Byrne, Kevin McGonagle; Justin Halley, Paul Flynn; Paddy McKenna, Stephen Murray (0-1), Tommy Craig; Cathal Byrne, Eoin Maguire, Davie Campion.
Subs: Gavin Baxter for T. Craig; Emmet O’Brien for J Halley, Cian Kieran for E Maguire, Thomas McKenny for D Campion, Eddie Lapinskras for S King.

Referee: Colm Keenan (Cooley Kickhams).