Louth overpower Carlow to secure quarter-final clash with Kildare
24 April 2022; Sam Mulroy of Louth scoring his side's fifth goal from a penalty during the Leinster GAA Football Senior Championship Round 1 match between Louth and Carlow at Páirc Tailteann in Navan, Meath. Photo by Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile
Mickey Harte's first win in the Championship as Louth manager came at a canter as the Division 3 league champions maintained their strong form and cruised through to the Leinster SFC quarter-finals.
Goals from prolific attacker Sam Mulroy, who finished with 2-5, Conor Grimes, Tommy Durnin and Ciaran Byrne comfortably secured next weekend's clash with Kildare.
After back to back promotions, and such an impressive Round 1 win now, Harte's side can fancy their chances of an upset against a Kildare side they'll be meeting in Division 2 next year.
Louth hit Niall Carew's Carlow hard and early, opening up an eight-point lead after 26 minutes and finishing off the Barrowsiders with three-more second-half majors.
The disappointing defeat means that Carlow will head for the Tailteann Cup though Louth remain alive and kicking in the provincial competition.
All the pre-match indicators pointed to Louth, promoted to Division 2 after another positive Allianz League campaign, having too much for a Carlow side that won just one of their seven Division 4 games.
It panned out that way too with Louth, admittedly aided by a stiff wind, bursting out of the blocks and going a long way to putting this encounter beyond Carlow inside just 20 minutes.
They led by 1-05 to 0-01 at that stage with Mulroy and Ciaran Downey both registering a brace of points each before powerful full-forward Grimes latched onto a ball down the right and unleashed a piledriver shot across goalkeeper Ciaran Cunningham to the net.
Back in 2018 when Carlow last won an opening round game in Leinster, overcoming Louth as it happens, star attacker Paul Broderick registered 1-8.
Broderick received an All-Star nomination later that year but retired after the 2021 Championship and a young Carlow side with three Championship debutants missed not just Broderick's quality but his experience.
A couple of Niall Hickey and Darragh Foley points lifted the travelling Carlow support but Louth's second goal was a hammer blow in response and left the 2010 Leinster finalists eight points clear.
Ex-AFL player Byrne showed his soccer skills this time when he rounded Cunningham and struck a left footed shot from the deck to the net, leaving Louth 2-05 to 0-03 clear.
Grimes thundered over a point on the brink of half-time to put Louth 2-06 to 0-05 to the good at half-time.
The favourites faced into the wind in the second-half and their task became more difficult when Byrne was replaced in the 43rd minute with an apparent injury.
It didn't hamper Louth as Durnin's superbly taken goal in the 49th minute left 10 points between the teams and put the result virtually beyond doubt.
Mulroy, who struck 3-51 during the league, added 61st and 68th minute goals, the second from the penalty spot after Downey was fouled on the way to goals.
S Mulroy (2-5, 1 pen, 3 frees, 1 '45); C Grimes, T Durnin (1-1), C Byrne (1-0); C Downey (0-2); C Early (0-1).
D Foley (0-3, 2 frees); R Dunphy (0-2); J Clarke (1 free), N Hickey, J Moore, C Crowley, C Hulton (0-1).
J Califf; D Corcoran, B Duffy, D McKenny; L Jackson, N Sharkey, E Callaghan; T Durnin, C Early; J Clutterbuck, S Mulroy, C McKeever; C Downey, C Grimes, C Byrne.
C Keenan for Byrne (43); T Jackson for McKeever (56); C Lennon for L Jackson (61); L Grey for Callaghan (66); G Browne for McKenny (66).
C Cunningham; L Roberts, S Buggy, C Doyle; J Morrissey, M Bambrick, S Bambrick; L Brennan, E Ruth; J Moore, J Clarke, D O'Brien; C Crowley, D Foley, C Hulton.
N Hickey for M Bambrick (11); R Dunphy for Brennan (39); M Ware for Hickey (53); S Clarke for Buggy (56); O Roberts for Moore (61).
N Cullen (Fermanagh).
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