An opportune goal on the 60th minute by ex-Galway player, Davy Glennon, saw Westmeath secure their initial league points of 2024, with a commendable victory over Antrim, a six-point win. The match, taking place in Mullingar amid damp and windy weather, drew a rather small audience.
The start of the match saw Westmeath, bolstered by the wind, swiftly establish a three-point lead thanks to David Williams’ successful free, and additional scores by Eoin Keyes and David O’Reilly. Conal Cunning, the Freetaker, commenced scoring for the visiting team, even so, Westmeath maintained their three-point lead with the score at 0-6 to 0-3, when a 12th minute 65 was achieved by Williams. However, Cunning stalled too long for a quarter-hour mark 65, leading to the referee calling for a throw-in.
The difference in points was reduced to just one when Eoin Keyes of the team managed by Joe Fortune struck a lucky goal in the 23rd minute. His shot intended for a point from a tight angle resulted in Antrim’s goalie, Tiernan Smyth, fumbling the sliotar over the goal-line. With little delay, the visiting team reciprocated with their own goal, with Niall Mckenna scoring from a short distance following a delivery from Scott Walsh. After having had a previous three-pointer denied by the extraordinary athletic prowess of Noel Conaty, Westmeath ended the first half well, with a comfortable lead of 1-12 to 1-8 over Antrim. Notably, the northern team didn’t make any wayward shots in the first half.
Having substituted at half-time, Peter Clarke soon augmented Westmeath’s lead with a stellar point. Williams scored another from a free, which Antrim’s latest sub, Eoin McFerran, promptly equalised. Westmeath’s three-point lead stood at 1-15 to 1-12 when substitute Glennon managed to strike a goal at the 60th minute, following a free by Williams that had just fallen short.
The performance of former All Star nominee Killian Doyle, who came off the bench to contribute two points, was a highlight in Westmeath’s latest game. The team maintained their lead throughout the final minutes despite aggressive play by Darren Gleeson’s team. Westmeath, however, could not seal a definitive win with a last-minute goal during injury time.
Their dismal performance in their first game in Salthill has been erased as Westmeath now looks like strong contenders for the Joe McDonagh Cup. Antrim, meanwhile, needs to vastly improve their play to stand a chance in the Leinster Championship.
The line-up for Westmeath included N Conaty, D Egerton, T Doyle, C Gaffney, J Gillen, K Regan, J Bermingham, R Greville, S McGovern, N Mitchell, D Williams, O McCabe, E Keyes, J Boyle and D O’Reilly. Joined in by substitutes A Craig, K Doyle, P Clarke, D Glennon and M Daly during the game.
Antrim’s team was made up of T Smyth, P Duffin, R McCloskey, P Burke, S Walsh, R McGarry, N O’Connor, E Campbell, E Óg McGarry, R McAteer, R McMullan, N McKenna, C Cunning, C McCann, and F McCurry. Later in the game, C Boyd, E McFerran, C McGarry, and A Bradley replaced some of the original team.
The referee for the game was S Hynes from Galway. Don’t forget to subscribe to our Inside Politics Podcast for up-to-date analysis and discussion. You can also sign-up for push notifications to receive all the best news, analysis and commentary directly on your device. Keep updated with The Irish Times on WhatsApp.