REPLAY CONFIRMED: Portlaoise and The Heath to go again in Laois LGFA Junior final

Portlaoise and The Heath will replay the 2026 Laois LGFA Junior Championship final on Thursday night after an investigation into the original fixture upheld the decision to order a replay.

The game, which was played in Annanough on October 4, originally ended with Portlaoise winning by a point on a scoreline of 1-8 to 0-10, with Portlaoise presented with the trophy after the final whistle.

However, questions had been raised over one of Portlaoise’s points during the game.

When Kirsten Keenan scored what was Portlaoise’s seventh point of the afternoon, the scoreboard subsequently showed their total as 1-8. The additional point could not be attributed to a particular scorer at the time.

Keely Burke, who was reporting on the game for the Leinster Express/Laois Live, queried the score with match officials and team officials during and after the game in an effort to establish where the additional point had come from.

At full-time, referee Johnny Brennan confirmed that the official score he had recorded was 1-8 to 0-10, matching the score displayed on the scoreboard.

In the days following the final, The Heath reviewed video footage of the game and subsequently lodged an appeal, arguing that Portlaoise had scored only 1-7. That would have left the sides level at 1-7 to 0-10 and extra-time would have been played.

An investigation committee subsequently recommended that a replay be awarded, with the replay initially scheduled for October 18. However, that fixture did not take place after Portlaoise appealed the decision to the Central Appeals Committee (CAC)

The Portlaoise appeal centred on the status of the investigation committee, with the club arguing that it had not been formally ratified at county board level.

The CAC then directed Laois LGFA to formally establish an investigation committee, as one had not previously been ratified at county board level.

Laois LGFA held an EGM on Monday night, October 19, where a three-person investigation committee was formally approved.

The committee then reviewed the available evidence, including the video footage of the final, referee Johnny Brennan’s report and evidence provided by Keely Burke, including her notebook and a written account of what she had witnessed at the October 4 final.

Following that review, the investigation committee backed the original decision and confirmed that a replay should be awarded.

Laois LGFA officials informed the Leinster Express/Laois Live of the decision on Tuesday evening, October 20, with the replay now fixed for Thursday, October 22, at 7.30pm in Annanough.

Portlaoise have 48 hours from being informed of the decision to appeal.

The winner will face a quick turnaround regardless, with the Laois representatives due to face Milltown, the Kildare Junior champions, in the Leinster Junior Club Championship on Saturday, October 24.