The motte itself is a substantial flat-topped mound, roughly 11 metres north to south and 30 metres east to west at its summit, rising 3 to 4 metres above the surrounding ground. Though grass now covers the entire structure and bushes have taken root across its surface, the defensive fosse that encircles it remains clearly visible, measuring 10 metres wide and 1.5 metres deep on the southern side. Unfortunately, quarrying activities have damaged the northern portion of the mound, obscuring some of its original features.

Attached to the southeast of the motte lies a rectangular bailey, measuring approximately 9 by 40 metres, which would have once contained the castle’s domestic buildings and served as a protected courtyard for daily activities. This lower enclosure retains its own defensive features: a fosse 7 metres wide and 0.7 metres deep, reinforced by an outer bank that still stands 0.3 metres high despite centuries of erosion. The careful observer can spot two causeways that once provided access to this fortification; one connects the motte directly to the bailey with a 2.3 metre wide earthen bridge, whilst another, slightly wider at 2.5 metres, crosses the bailey’s fosse from the southeast.

This type of castle construction was introduced to Ireland by the Anglo-Normans in the late 12th century, representing a rapid and effective method of establishing control over newly conquered territories. The wooden structures that would have crowned both the motte and filled the bailey have long since vanished, leaving only these impressive earthworks as testament to medieval power and ambition in the Irish midlands.