Inside Track: If Louth avoid defeat against Clare All-Ireland hopes will be kept alive

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This weekend's All-Ireland qualifier with Clare is not a season-defining game for Louth seniors. With the Leinster championship already in the bag, 2025 has found a prominent place in the narrative that won't be erased.

That's not to say Sunday's Portlaoise tie is not without huge importance. It has plenty of that, the biggest game the team has been engaged in since being crowned provincial champions.

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Victory, or a draw, would maintain the championship run, putting Louth among the dozen counties left with a chance of winning the Sam Maguire. Anything else, would be a nod to Sam Mulroy and his mates to return to club football.

When the draw for this section of the competition was made, this outcome was always a possibility. The Monaghan match came less than a fortnight after Louth's Leinster win, which, you wouldn't be surprised to be told, was, understandably, royally celebrated.

A huge defeat was on the cards as that Newbridge tie drew to a close. Tommy Durnin came up with a goal, followed by a Mulroy point to leave six between them.

Given that score difference could come into play when the final sums are done, they were important flags to raise.

Down had home advantage for the most recent match, and they made it pay in the first half in particular, treading what was for them a well-known path to the Louth goals.

Local knowledge helped the Mournemen to stay in front; but with the wind on their backs and now more familiar with the terrain, Louth made a tremendous match of it in the last quarter, and all things considered - dubious decisions among them - did a great job to get to within a point at the finish, 0-25 to 0-24.

Notice anything about that scoreline? It's the first in quite a few games that Louth didn't have a goal after their name.

Best remembered are the three against Meath in the Leinster final, and the four which Mulroy and Durnin divided among themselves in the Monaghan outing.

One might have done the trick in Newry - it would have happened had Donal McKenny's angled shot at a crucial stage been just an inch or two more to the right.

There's no history to this game. It's the first between the counties at championship level, though there have been several in the league. Clare haven't got such a poor record; in fact, they've won the most recent, played at Ennis's Cusack Park.

The Banners have reached this stage thanks to an appearance in the Munster final. They well beaten by Kerry that day, and since then have taken a drubbing from Down in this competition. They followed on the weekend before last with another defeat, this one at the hands of Monaghan.

In that Clones match, however, they had a decent lead at half-time and were still in front ten minutes in the second half. A Conor McCarthy goal put Monaghan in front for the first time and in the end the Farney were nine points clear, having outscored Clare 1-18 to 1-2 after the interval.

It's good that Louth turned in that fighting second half performance in Newry. To have taken a battering - which looked a possibility at one stage - would have done morale no good at all.

But having rallied, making a mighty contribution to what was a tremendous second half, both teams flat out, Ger Brennan's students gave themselves the perfect fillip. They'll benefit from the fortnight's break.

With luck, there could be a hectic few weeks coming up. If successful against Clare, Louth will be out again the following week, vying for a place in the quarter-finals, which are scheduled for seven days later. Travel-weary supporters may be, but when was it ever as good as this before?