Westmeath stars Egan and O'Toole on county final clash
Pictured above: Ger Egan of Tyrrellspass breaks away from Athlone's Conor Rushe during their recent Westmeath SFC semi-final. Photo: John McCauley.
“Who would have thought after the first game that we’d be in the county final?”
This comment from Tyrrellspass captain Ger Egan in relation to his club’s appearance in Sunday’s Flanagan Cup decider echoes the opinion of most observers of Westmeath club football.
The concession of five goals to St Loman’s, Mullingar had many people writing off the ‘Tidy Town’s chances of challenging for the blue riband in the club game. Indeed, some felt they might struggle to avoid being sucked into a relegation dogfight. However, three solid wins since sees them back facing Declan Kelly’s charges again on Sunday in a ‘winner-takes-all’ decider.
Egan said: “It’s great to be back in the final. It’s been a tough few weeks - a surreal time. We showed a lot of battling qualities in the recent games. Conceding five goals against St Loman’s could be the best thing that ever happened to us. You learn from your mistakes. We knew we had to tighten up at the back and I think we’ve got better as the weeks have gone on. We only conceded one goal in total in the last three games and that’s a big bonus, obviously. We’re building off that.”
Remarkably, at the other end of the pitch, the men in sky blue and navy have failed to raise a single green flag in any of their four games. The former Westmeath captain was self-deprecating in this regard, saying: “I’d enough goal chances against Shandonagh myself to do us for the rest of the year! Look, we’re chipping in with points and, at the end of the day, the team with the most scores wins. We’ve got this far without shooting the lights out, but we’re winning. I remember years when we shot the lights out, but lost when it came to battles.”
St Loman’s have inflicted three defeats on next weekend’s opponents in county finals since 2013 during an unprecedented period of success for the Mullingar outfit.
Egan added: “They are going to be hot favourites, everybody knows that, and rightly so. We’ve lost three from three finals against them and that will definitely favour them. But you know never know what will happen on the day of a final. We’ll do everything we can to put a performance together, but it’s going to take a huge performance to beat them. It’s as simple as that.”
The underdogs’ skipper is hoping for some sort of big match atmosphere despite the well-documented Covid-19 restrictions. He stated: “Having some supporters there will add a bit to the atmosphere, even it is only 200. The walls will probably be used also, and we’ll get a few more there! It’s been a strange year, but the lads have got used to it. They are just happy to be playing matches. The final day will bring its own atmosphere, there’s so much at stake.”
Remarkably, despite his richly-deserved high profile in Westmeath GAA circles, Egan has yet to feature in the winners’ enclosure in a Flanagan Cup decider. When asked if this disappointing statistic will change next Sunday afternoon, the former Athlone IT student responded: “Please God, we’ll get there. We are going to put in a huge effort. If it’s us getting over the line, that would be brilliant. If it isn’t, there will be another year. Look, we’ll give it everything we can. That’s all we can do.”
Loman's not taking anything for granted
Ronan O’Toole has been one of the most consistent forwards - both for club and county - in Westmeath football circles in recent years, and the St Loman’s, Mullingar ace is very hopeful that the Flanagan Cup will be adorned by blue and white ribbons around 5.30pm next Sunday.
St Loman’s hammered Tyrrellspass in their first round robin game, scoring five unanswered goals in the process, but O’Toole expects a totally different challenge from the ‘Tidy Town’ outfit in the decider. “It will be a different story in the final. They are a changed team and they will be ready for us."
"We’ve played four games and they’ve all been tough, but we’ve managed to get through them all. The game against The Downs was especially tough. I think in that match we showed the character that we have, as well as having a strong panel. Paddy Dowdall came on and greatly steadied the ship in the second half. We didn’t have TJ Cox, but Fionn O’Hara came in and kicked a great point when we needed it. It showed the strength-in-depth that we have this year,” he reflected.
Indeed, there is a degree of uncertainty about the favourites’ lineout for the final. “It looks like TJ won’t get out for the final (due to Army duties) and we’re carrying a few knocks. Paul Whelehan has a groin injury and we have a few more niggles,” O’Toole said.
He continued: “It would be nice to have a big crowd there, but I think only 200 are allowed. Regardless, and I think I can speak on behalf of most of the players, we’re just happy to be playing. Obviously, it would be great to have all our supporters there, but we’re still grateful that we are playing in the county final.”
Declan Kelly has taken over the managerial reins from Luke Dempsey at the Delvin Road club. Clearly, O’Toole admires both the present and past bainisteoirs. “I think it’s been a smooth transition. They probably have a different style of play. Luke was great for his five years there and we had great success with him. Now Declan is bringing a fresh face in. He has brought in a lot of young lads and has given everyone a chance. I think people are enjoying it,” he added.
He has the height of respect for next Sunday’s opponents. “Tyrrellspass are always a strong outfit with players of the calibre of Ger Egan, Dean McNicholas, Jamie Gonoud, and Darren Quinn in goals. We won’t be taking anything for granted. It will be the toss of a coin. But, hopefully, it goes our way."
“At the start of the year, you had to win five games to guarantee that you would win the county final. We’ve won four and, please God, next Sunday will be the fifth. We’re hoping for another county medal – they are hard won,” O’Toole concluded.
- Gerry Buckley.