Dowdallshill emphatically put the heartache of losing the previous year's junior decider behind them by capturing the 2003 Louth junior football championship. And boy did they do it in style! The St Brigids Park outfit then went on to complete a clean sweep of junior trophies by adding the Division Three league and Kevin Mullen Shield titles to round off a truly remarkable year. The Wee County's JFC always provides plenty of thrills and spills and this was the case again in 2003. An intriguing contest delivered a fairytale ending for Dowdallshill, who emerged from the ashes of '02 to clinch a famous win. The '03 county junior final between Dowdallshill and Westerns was one of the best games played in Louth all year, producing more twists and turns than an Alfred Hitchcock thriller. In the end, it was only the result that mattered and the 'Hill prevailed by a solitary point, 3-5 to 3-4. This was the sweetest of victories for Dowdallshill: they had been pipped by Na Piarsaigh in the 2002 final ... the sort of defeat that would trigger the demise of a lesser team. But the St Brigid's Park outfit kept plugging away and let their football do the talking. Now they've earned the reward that so cruelly eluded them twelve months earlier: a place in intermediate football. The final was played in Louth village on Sunday September 7th. Dowdallshill hadn't won the JFC in 33 years and went into the '03 decider as clear underdogs. Westerns have never won a junior title but were red hot favourites on account of their impressive charge to the final, dishing out real hammerings to Wolfe Tones, Young Irelands and Glen Emmets. Furthermore, prior to the county final, the sides had met three times in 2003, with the Westerns coming out on top on all three occasions. By contrast, the 'Hill were slightly less convincing en route to the decider, drawing two of their three group games before outclassing John Mitchells at the semi-final stage. Crucially, however, the Dundalk club had played in the 2002 final, and that experience would stand them in good stead. The timing of this outstanding junior treble success could hardly be better. With major plans in place for new clubrooms and a community centre, the Green & Reds are riding the crest of a wave. The 2003 JFC decider was an epic encounter. The sides registered 1-3 apiece in the first half before the game erupted to life with a veritable goalfest upon the resumption. Amazingly, the first four scores of the second period were all goals! Two of these three-pointers were netted within a minute by Dowdallshill corner forward and Man of the Match Donal Sheridan, scores which were ultimately the difference between winning and losing. Westerns never gave up, though, and the sides were level with two minutes remaining. Up stepped Enda Hughes to fire over the last score of the match but there would be a late scare before the celebrations could begin in earnest: a late Reaghstown raid saw David Martin's goal effort come back off the post via inspirational goalkeeper John Kerr. It was a lucky escape for Dowdallshill but they had done enough to deserve victory. Westerns had wind advantage in the first half and started briskly with a goal and a point inside the opening eight minutes. Even though Donal Sheridan opened the winners' account with a point from a free, they still trailed by 1-2 to 0-1 at the end of the first quarter. The Dundalk contenders got back into the game in the 18th minute when their influential full forward Donal O'Callaghan was fouled in the danger area for a penalty, which Gerry McShane duly dispatched. Westerns stretched their lead to a couple of points two minutes later but the 'Hill would have the last pair of scores of the half. Two more fouls on Donal O'Callaghan resulted in frees, which were stroked over confidently by Sheridan and Stephen Martin. Martin's point closed the first-half action and the teams went in level at the short whistle. Dowdallshill had weathered the storm, so to speak. They would have had the backing of the elements in the second half but the wind dropped and rain began to fall. Conditions became difficult and Westerns struck with a goal in the first minute of the second half. The Reaghstown men could have cut loose at this stage but recorded three wides in six minutes, allowing Dowdallshill off the hook. And the Dundalk outfit made the most of their good fortune. Sheridan rammed home his first goal in the 38th minute after excellent approach play from Martin and McShane. Within sixty seconds, the competitions top scorer (who finished the campaign with 3-14 to his credit) had his second goal of the final, capitalising on an unforced error from the Westerns 'keeper. Suddenly ahead by 3-3 to 2-3, Dowdallshill were on their way. But the game wasn't over yet: Westerns rallied to fire an equalising goal in the 42nd minute ... Sheridan's 45th-minute free edged the 'Hill back in front ... again, Westerns drew level. When the Green & Golds came in search of a lead goal, Dowdallshill goalie John Kerr was equal to Alan Dooley's shot, deflecting it wide for a '45' (from which Dooley hit the post). Midfielder Enda Hughes' point in the 58th minute extracted a huge cheer from the Red & Green support and Kerr was called into action for the winners one more time before the long whistle. This time the heroic custodian stretched to push David Martin's flick onto the post. The danger was cleared and Dowdallshill held out for a landmark success. After the final whistle, Dowdallshill captain Ciaran O'Callaghan accepted the Christy Bellew Cup from county secretary and former 'Hill player Pat Toner. With the junior championship played on an initial league basis for the first time, the '03 competition was a somewhat protracted affair. Therein, Dowdallshill were the team that refused to die. In Group A, they came up against John Mitchells, Glen Emmets and Annaghminnon Rovers. They kicked off with a 3-10 to 1-10 defeat of Annaghminnon at Tallanstown, before concluding their group outings with two draws: in mid-July at Castlebellingham and three weeks later at Dunleer, against Glen Emmets and John Mitchells respectively, each time on a scoreline of 1-9 apiece. As the Mitchells and Tullyallen had also drawn with each other, this left a three-way tie at the top of the group. Originally, only two teams were scheduled to advance from Group A to the knock-out stage, but due to the three-way tie the County Board had a re-think and decided to allow all three teams through to join Group B winners Westerns in the semi-finals. Typically Dowdallshill were drawn against John Mitchells and the semi-final took place only eight days after their drawn encounter. However, this time there was only going to be one winner. At Pairc Clan Na nGael on Saturday August 16th, Dowdallshill defeated the Ballybailie lads by 2-11 to 2-5 to book their place in the 2003 junior showcase. The rest, as they say, is history... Not only have Dowdallshill gathered major silverware - on THREE counts! - and gained promotion, they've also erased the bitter memory of that 0-13 to 1-8 defeat to Na Piarsaigh in the 2002 junior final. Prior to then, they hadn't even appeared in a junior final since defeating none other than St Patricks in the 1970 decider. In '02, the club only had to play a single match to reach the last two, but the restructuring of the third-tier championship left them much busier in '03. Including the final, Dowdallshill were unbeaten in a total of five championship games, which should surely stand them in good stead for the challenge of intermediate fare. During the group stage, Dowdallshill demonstrated remarkable character, even when their aspirations were hanging by a mere thread. When they faced John Mitchells at Dunleer on Friday August 8th, the 'Hill looked to be on their way out of the competition. After conceding four points on the trot, the would-be champions trailed from the 48th to the 58th minute before a dramatic pointed free from Donal Sheridan two minutes from time earned a draw. The grit shown in that game typified Dowdallshill's year and the fact that they went on from there to clinch the Christy Bellew Cup is surely a lesson to every team. There would be many hairy moments in the final too, but the Dundalk team refused to throw in the towel. After their semi-final win over the Mitchells, some concern was expressed over the quality of Dowdallshill's shooting but thankfully they looked sharp in the final, with Donal Sheridan in particular giving an excellent account of himself. Westerns were fancied by many because they had played intermediate football in 2002 (almost reaching the knock-out stages of the IFC!). Also, they had played some impressive stuff since Meath legend Tommy Dowd was drafted in as team coach. In Martin Kane and Lee Smith, they held two vastly experienced and influential former senior footballers in their ranks. On the evidence of their massive tallies en route to the final, the Reaghstown men had the look of a team that was on course for junior championship honours. Of course, mighty Dowdallshill had other ideas. They confirmed the form by also topping Division Three and then beating Glen Emmets in the final of the Kevin Mullen Shield, leaving us all in no doubt whatsoever as to who was the best junior team in Louth in 2003. Dowdallshill, 2003 Louth junior football champions: John Kerr; Peter Hughes, Eamonn Duffy, Peadar Toal; David Agnew, Ciaran O'Callaghan, Eunan Whyte; Noel Mohan, Enda Hughes (0-1); Declan Roe, Gerry McShane (1-0), Gerard Roe; Stephen Martin (0-1), Donal O'Callaghan, Donal Sheridan (2-3). Subs: K McParland, G Roe, E McArdle Tweet

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