‘Now we’re contenders’ says ebullient Westmeath boss

“I thought that was our best performance all year. We controlled. We were strong, fast and aggressive. Now we’re contenders.”

That was manager Frank Browne’s initial reaction as Westmeath ladies began their TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Championship campaign with a resounding win at home to Monaghan last Sunday – a 14-point win that was a huge reversal in fortunes from the league defeat in Clones in February.

“We were disappointed coming out of Clones because a big thing for the group is doing ourselves justice, and we felt we didn’t do ourselves justice in Clones,” he said. “We were poor, we didn’t turn up, we didn’t set the agenda and we didn’t tackle. And not picking up anything there is probably the reason we’re down in Division 3 now.

“So we had to focus. What we were looking at today is how we controlled the game and set the agenda. We got the two goals and that set us up. What we were very good at then was controlling the whole pace of the game. When we needed to put pace into it, we put pace into it. No more than the men last night, when we needed to sit back and absorb a bit of pressure, we did so.

“I said all week that by 4 o’clock today, we’d know if we’re contenders or not, and I think we can safely say we’re contenders now.

“It’s step three of seven – that’s how we’re looking at it. We have step four next, with steps five, six and hopefully seven after that. We’ll be going to Louth next week and hope to get a win there too.”

With Westmeath keeping Monaghan to just four points from frees over the 70-odd minutes, Browne was impressed with how his troops closed the visitors down.

“It was Sarah Murphy’s first day back. Internally we call her ‘Darren Fay’. She’s the classic full back. Her reading of the game and her ability to judge is excellent, " he said

“Is she at her fittest? No, she’s not. She’s not the fastest from A to B at the moment but she doesn’t start from A all the time. She’s thinking ahead.

“I thought the whole full back line did well. Chloe Kelly had to go back there because we lost Lara [McCartan]. Fiona Coyle is just a legend. She’s one of our warriors; I thought she was immense.”

In attack, Browne was delighted with how Lucy McCartan and Anna Jones in particular controlled the game, feeding the impressive double act of Katie Kilmurray and Sarah Dillon.

“At half time we were saying that our shooting efficiency was down at around 41% or 42%, and that was a concern for us,” he added.

“There was a strong breeze. We were very much focused on the first ten minutes of the second half and we didn’t give away a goal, we’d kick on from there.

“I think physically, the girls were in great condition and in the end, that really helped us kick on. But look it, it’s June and it’s the championship. If you’re not in good shape now, you’re in the wrong game completely.”

With Westmeath preparing to meet Louth next Sunday (Integral GAA grounds in Drogheda, 2pm), Browne admits the trip to the north east carries the potential for a “banana skin”.

“We’ll put our best foot forward,” he continued. “The carrot for us now is the quarter-final. As the (Westmeath) men showed last night and we showed today, it’s about asking where else we want to go now.”

The Wexford-born bainisteoir finished by saying that it’s a “brilliant time for Westmeath”, with the ongoing success of the men’s side a real driver for the ladies, and vice versa.

“The rising tide in the harbour lifts all boats,” he said. “It’s a brilliant time for Westmeath GAA. Somebody said to me that people here won’t be worried about the price of diesel for the next week or two. It’ll be about ‘who we’re playing’ and who’s next to come out of the pot on Tuesday. And that’s exactly what the championship should be about.”