A second-half surge from Louth capped by a wonder goal from Craig Lennon gave the Wee county a famous three-point win over their arch-rivals Meath in Navan on Sunday afternoon.
A third-quarter flurry that saw Louth outscore Meath 1-6 to 0-1 was key as Mickey Harte's side boosted their survival chances in Division 2 of the Allianz Football League.
Thousands packed into Páirc Tailteann to witness one of the biggest games between the two sides in recent memory. It may not have had the drama of 2010 or the emotion of 2012, but there was certainly the same old spice in this bitter rivalry.
When the game began, it seemed for a period as though Meath were going to blow their Boyne Valley neighbours away. Early scores from Shane Walsh and the lively Jordan Morris saw the Royals race into a three-point lead.
At the other end, Louth simply couldn’t get a score on the board. However, on two or three occasions goal chances presented themselves and if it hadn’t been for some solid Meath defending, the Wee county may well have found themselves in control of the game.
But Colm O'Rourke's side kept piling on the pressure and when Jason Scully made it four points to no score with a sublime right-footed effort in the 19th minute, Louth looked in big trouble.
A trio of early changes didn’t help their cause, with Anthony Williams, Leonard Gray and Tom Jackson all subbed before the 20-minute mark.
Mickey Harte's men finally got on the scoresheet in the 17th minute through Daire McConnon. The Ardee St Mary’s man latched onto a fine Ciaran Downey ball to get Louth off the mark, with Tom Jackson adding a second soon after.
With Meath three points to the good, the game spun on its head in the 23rd minute when Harry O'Higgins was shown a straight red card for a high-tackle on Ciarán Murphy. The call seemed a tad harsh at the time, with the Navan crowd voicing their displeasure at referee Joe McQuillan.
Meath lost their way after the red card and failed to score for the last 15 minutes of the first-half. In that time, Louth tagged on four more points to take a surprising one-point lead into the break.
Just like in the first-half, Meath started the brighter of the two sides after the interval and reeled off a couple of quick scores, the first of which was a sensational kick from the impressive Jack Flynn.
From this point until the 74th minute of play, the game devolved into what can only be described as chaos. Sam Mulroy began the madness by nearly handpassing the ball into his own net before Conor Grimes kicked a superb score at the other end.
Throughout the game, Louth keeper James Califf took on the Ethan Rafferty style of goalkeeping by spending more time in the opposition half than his own. This nearly had a disastrous effect midway through the second period, when a pinpoint goal-kick from Meath shot-stopper Harry Hogan took Califf out of the game and left the Dreadnots star stranded in midfield.
As Califf retreated, the ball made its way to Morris, who allowed himself to be blocked down with the goal at his mercy. A huge let-off for Louth who hadn't really gotten going yet at this point of the half.
That was to be just a momentary reprieve however, as Meath finally raised the green flag through Donal Keogan. The half-back was slipped in brilliantly by Morris and the finish was unerring as Meath assumed control of the game. And when Jack Flynn stretched the lead to five points in Meath's favour soon after, the game seemed to be running away from Louth.
But the men in red and white showed serious resolve to fight their way back into the game. Daire McConnon stopped the rot with a fine effort, before Newtown Blues man Ciarán Downey rattled off three quality scores on the spin to make it a one-point game.
Having given everything in the first 15 minutes of the second period, Colm O'Rourke's 14-men flagged badly down the stretch. A Ronan Jones mark relieved some pressure for the hosts who looked out on their feet.
In contrast, Louth looked energised and when a loose kick-pass was played towards the Meath midfield, Louth's Craig Lennon pounced and scored one of the best goals you’ll ever see.
An 11th-minute substitute, Lennon read the play perfectly and expertly cut out the wayward pass. Meath had left no-one at home, and after a 70-yard gut-busting run, Lennon had the wherewithal to pick his spot and coolly finish past the despairing Hogan.
Skipper Sam Mulroy tagged on another point as Meath reeled from being outscored 1-4 to 0-1 in the space of less than five minutes.
Meath threw everything at Louth down the stretch, and if it wasn’t for a wonderful bit of defending from Conor Grimes, the Royals would have had a certain goal. The full-forward tracked back the length of the pitch to get a vital hand in to keep Louth in the lead.
As always in a Louth v Meath game, there was a dramatic goal-line scramble at the death. Thankfully, there was no controversial incidents this time as the ball went out of play of a Louth man.
The resulting '45 was plucked clean from the sky by Lennon, who fittingly had the final say.
A historic win for Louth over their old rivals and Mickey Harte can nearly begin planning for another season in Division Two.
For Colm O'Rourke, Meath's promotion dreams look in danger of going up in smoke, with the relegation trapdoor potentially looming large.
