A noted athlete from his early days, Lynch was an All-Ireland champion runner as a youngster.
Lynch first appeared on the inter-county scene with Down as a minor, before captaining the under-21 team to the Ulster U21FC title in 1984.
[1] Lynch was immediately called into the senior team and established himself at corner-back until he stepped away in 1988.
After a period away from Gaelic football, he returned with the Newry Bosco club and won a Down IFC medal in 1996.
Lynch took charge of Newry Mitchels for two years before returning to Shane O'Neill's and guiding the club to Division One status.