Louth qualifiy for the Lory Meagher Cup Final

Louth qualified for the Lory Meagher Cup Final against Fermanagh when they held off a late rally from Cavan on Sunday.

The sides were level four times inside the opening quarter, with Louth wing-back Liam Molloy hitting the pick of the early points to kick off an unanswered run of 1-5 from the away side. Andrew Mackin touched home the game’s only goal from close range for Louth, who pushed on with scores from Darren Geoghegan, Ryan Walsh, David Kettle and Paul Matthews as they opened up a 1-10 to 0-7 interval lead.

Brian Fitzgerald’s free-taking kept Cavan in contention throughout the third quarter and after Louth had David Kettle sent off for a second booking, the hosts found their rhythm. With Fitzgerald taking his tally from placed balls to 11 and Seán Keating and Cillian Sheanon also on target, Cavan hit five on the trot to move within one inside added time as the Lory Meagher produced another close finish, but Geoghegan’s seventh point sealed Louth’s place in their first final since 2016.

Scorers for Louth: Darren Geoghegan 0-7 (6f); Andrew Mackin 1-0; Paul Matthews 0-2; David Kettle 0-2; Feidhlim Joyce 0-1; Gavin Kerrigan 0-1; Liam Molloy 0-1; Ryan Walsh 0-1.

Scorers for Cavan: Brian Fitzgerald 0-11 (10f, 1 ‘65); Seán Keating 0-2; Philip Brady 0-1; Fiachra Hughes 0-1; Cillian Sheanon 0-1.