Wallace on McHugh: 'He’s a legend in Westmeath'

“Something Mark has driven into us this year is that the talent is in the group,” Westmeath captain Ronan Wallace has said in a video interview on GAA social media.

McHugh told the team “the talent is in the group, and you just have to believe that you can achieve what you want”.

“We set out goals this year to win any competition we’re in.

“We had a disappointing league but we knew we had to bounce back in the Leinster.

“He said every game was a new opportunity to show that (their talent), and this group has just gone from strength to strength in each game.

“We’re just riding a crest at the moment and we believe we can keep going.

“He’s so passionate, he’s GAA mad. He just loves it, he lives and breathes it.

“He shows the commitment – he travels three and a half hours down to each training session and then back up after, to be with us.

“He shows the faith in us, so we just have to repay him on the pitch.

“He’s a real tactician, he loves going into depth about what we need to do better, what we can do well.

“He’s a legend in Westmeath and I’m delighted for him.

“He’s nearly one of the lads in there, he gets on so well with everyone. He’s in for all the crack, he knows that the hard work needs to be done, but he also knows that we need a bit of crack around the group.

“He’s the first man doing it, he loves a good sneer in a video session as well, so no one’s safe really at all!

“He’s a great man.”