Slow start costs Laois U-20 footballers as Longford prevail in Leinster Championship

Kieran Kelly's side took their time to find their feet as nine minutes went by before Laois had any attack of any substance. In those first nine minutes, Longford kicked three scores and had four points on the board as Luke Donnelly raised an orange flag for the game's first score. Patrick Mollahan pointed a free from close range after Laois goalkeeper Cathal Tierney picked the ball up off the ground. Jamie Dorr made it 0-4 to no score after seven minutes.

Laois' first attack saw Ennae Byrne tap over a free before Paddy Fitzpatrick ran with the ball from one side of the arc to the other before splitting the posts off his left boot. Longford maintained their dominance and added 1-2 without reply. Their goal came from corner-back Mark Cooney, who probably couldn't believe his luck when he was played through on goals with no Laois defender in sight. James Hagan scored a point on either side of the Cooney goal.

Fitzpatrick raised his second white flag for Laois, but Longford went down the other end and got a second goal courtesy of Donnelly, with Hagan assisting him. Laois' response was a good one as they replied with a goal of their own, as Darren Brenna stuck the ball into the bottom corner after Robbie Murphy had done well to break down a Longford kick-out. Byrne pointed a second free as Laois reduced Longford's lead to five.

Longford were finding it much easier to score as they kicked over the next three points. Hagan scored two of them as he ended the first half with four points to his name. Jamie Dorr scored the other one before Ultan Dunne had a great chance at getting a goal before half-time for Laois, but he unfortunately drove the ball straight at Darragh Egan in the Longford goal. Byrne's third point of the half put Laois back within seven points. The half ended with Longford being reduced to 14 men as goalscorer Cooney was shown a black card for a tackle on Fitzpatrick. Longford led 2-9 to 1-5 at the break.

The away side began the second period in a similar way to the first, as William McEntire and Mollahan scored a point each. It was from here that Laois had a purple patch to get back within two points, having been nine points in arrears. Dylan Murphy got the first of those points before Portlaoise's Darren Brennan kicked a two-point free and a 45. Ultan Dunne, David Donohue and Eoin Johnson also added points with the game now in the melting pot with 15 minutes to play.

Donnelly ended Laois' spell of scores when he raised his second two-point free of the evening before Byrne kicked his first from play for Laois. Longford saw the game out from here and put four points on the scoreboard without reply. Mollahan scored two, while Cormac Flynn and Dorr also raised white flags. Laois captain Danny McGrath added a late two-pointer as his long ball into the square bounced and landed between the posts, but it was Longford who came out with a five-point victory.

Laois' backs are to the wall now in the group, and they'll go to Meath next Wednesday knowing that a defeat would likely spell the end of their 2026 Leinster campaign. Meath are top of Group 2 after they defeated Carlow in Netwatch Cullen Park.

FINAL SCORE

Longford 2-17

LAOIS 1-15

Scorers – Longford: Luke Donnelly 1-4 (two two-point frees), Patrick Mollahan (0-2 frees) and James Hagan 0-4, Mark Cooney 1-0, Jamie Dorr 0-3, William McEntire and Cormac Flynn 0-1 each. Laois: Darren Brennan 1-3 (1 two-point free, 1 45), Ennae Byrne 0-4 (0-3 frees), Danny McGrath (one two-pointer) and Paddy Fitzpatrick 0-2 each, Eoin Johnson, David Donoghue, Ultan Dunne, and Dylan Murphy 0-1 each.

LAOIS: Cathal Tierney (Park-Ratheniska); Ben O’Connor (Portlaoise), Dan Boland (Courtwood), Fionn O’Sullivan (Crettyard); Hugo Emerson (Portarlington), Danny McGrath (Graiguecullen), Cathal Buggie (Stradbally); Robbie Murphy (St Joseph’s), Cormac Deegan (Annanough); Paddy Fitzpatrick (The Heath), Eoin Johnson (St Joseph’s), Darren Brennan (Portlaoise), Dylan Murphy (Graiguecullen), Ennae Byrne (Arles-Kilcruise), Ultan Dunne (O’Dempsey’s). Subs: David Donoghue (Stradbally) for Deegan (37 mins), Jack Julian (Ballylinan) for Emerson (39 mins), Niall Lalor (Kilcavan) for Fitzpatrick (49 mins), Tom O’Connell (Mountmellick) for O’Sullivan (56 mins).

LONGFORD: Darragh Egan; Alex Nugent, Ronan Burke, Mark Cooney; Conor McHugh, Colin Gilna, William McEntire; Daniel Galvin, Shane Donoghue; Peter Farrell, Jamie Dorr, Luke Donnelly; James Hagan, Patrick Mollahan, Cormac Flynn. Subs: Sean Fagan for Farrell (46 mins), Max Gallagher for Galvin (49 mins), Alan Mimnagh for McEntire (56 mins), Cormac Mulvey for Donnelly (60 mins), Matthew Farrell for Flynn (61 mins).

Referee: Darragh Byrne (Wicklow)