Niall McDonnell will be playing in just his second match at Croke Park when Louth take on Dublin in Sunday’s Leinster SFC final.
Whereas Dublin had lured in swathes of the GAA population last season by a series of underwhelming performances during the spring months and, therefore, stoked an unrealistic degree of expectation within Louth ahead of their Leinster final meeting, there has been no such lead-in period for Dessie Farrell’s side this season.
The Dubs emanated from Division 2 in 2023 and like Galway and Mayo in the campaigns previously, were able to time their peak for the decisive rounds of the championship. In contrast to the Connacht sides, though, they went on to capture the Sam Maguire Cup in August.
