Westmeath senior hurling manager Brian Hanley.

It is vital that Westmeath gild the Lilywhites in hurling play-off

 

GERRY BUCKLEY previews Westmeath’s All-Ireland SHC play-off against Kildare which takes place in Cusack Park tomorrow (Saturday).

 

“Hanley has got a lifeline.”

So read the text from a friend at around 5.30pm last Saturday when the shock news of 1/10 favourites Kerry losing the Christy Ring Cup final to Kildare in Croke Park filtered through.

My companion’s clear inference was that Westmeath’s confirmed opponents in Saturday’s Liam MacCarthy Cup promotion/relegation play-off would be easier to defeat than the Kingdom.

And I must confess that my first reaction (prior to deleting all my 'obair in aisce’ for a proposed column with a Kerry slant!) was to concur.

However, having watched highlights (albeit brief) from the tier two hurling final on the Sunday Game programme and the triumphant scenes thereafter, I now fully realise that Eoin Price and his colleagues are up against it next weekend.

The Lilywhites’ articulate manager, Brian Lawlor came across as a man on a mission. While garnering the Ring Cup is a mission accomplished in its own right, there is no doubt that a place in the round robin series of the Leinster championship next year is a huge incentive for Kildare, and they will be well up for their clash against the men in maroon and white.

Yes, credit where it is due, Westmeath (short the aforementioned Price to boot) edged out the men in all-white in a must-win league match on the eve of St Patrick’s Day this year, thereby avoiding the ignominy of dropping to the fourth tier of the National Hurling League.

In the Championship, however, Westmeath needed a late burst against London to narrowly condemn the Exiles, thereby completing stage one of a two-part process to remain in next October’s draw for the 2015 Leinster SHC.

Kildare, albeit against inferior opposition than Westmeath have faced, have been building up a head of steam in recent weeks. It was interesting to hear Lawlor speak of the benefits of playing games on successive weekends, in sharp contrast to the negative vibes from the Lake County camp about a similar 'problem’ (while again conceding that Westmeath’s summer campaign to date has been at a more intense level of competition).

Naturally, most of the players on duty in on March 16 (a game Westmeath won by 3-11 to 1-14) will be on duty again Cusack Park on Saturday (throw-in: 3.45pm).

Westmeath and Kildare have previously met on 13 occasions in the senior hurling championship under its various guises. The Lake County has nine wins, the Lilywhites four.

It is imperative for the future of the small ball game in Westmeath that the Lake men reach double figures on Saturday afternoon in the 'win’ column against Kildare.

Brian Hanley’s charges surely had much loftier (and achievable) ambitions at the start of the year. But, given the trauma during the spring, avoiding league and championship relegation would be a somewhat acceptable outcome with such a young and inexperienced team - particularly if the bulk of the same players can put in a top class display in the upcoming Leinster U21 semi-final against Dublin. Westmeath are trying to reach a first ever provincial hurling final in the U21 grade. And that semi-final is winnable, let there be no mistake about it.

Supporters’ interest in the fortunes of the county's footballers is depressingly low of late, while the hurlers also lack any meaningful fan base. It would be great to see a decent Westmeath crowd in Mullingar tomorrow (Saturday). That is an unlikely scenario. However, a defeat is an unthinkable scenario.