Search Results for 'James Dolan'

Last weekend’s action on the playing fields means that the football championships on either side of the Shannon have reached the quarter-final stages. While a lot of football has yet to be played before any silverware is handed out, things have become a lot clearer, now that we have reached the knock-out stage.

Last weekend will live long in the memory of all Irish sports fans. First our grand-slam rugby heroes and then Bernard Dunne wrote their names into the history books. In doing so they gave the whole nation a timely lift. Unfortunately things didn’t run as smoothly for the football fraternity in both Westmeath and Roscommon, with both counties crashing out of their respective u21 championships, and both senior sides also being turned over.

With all the preliminaries out of the way we have reached the semi-final stage of the senior and intermediate championships in Westmeath. The first senior semi-final, featuring the two heavyweights of recent years, Garrycastle and Tyrrellspass, takes place in Cusack Park this Sunday at 3pm. This intriguing contest will be followed by the replayed quarter-final between Mullingar Shamrocks and St Loman’s at 4.30pm.

What an intriguing county final pairing this year’s Westmeath senior championship has thrown up. And what a final lies in store. In the green and red corner we have a Garrycastle outfit hungry to make amends for last year’s county final defeat to Castledaly. In the blue corner are the underdogs, St Loman’s, making their first county final appearance in 41 years. Indeed it was 1963 when the Saints won their third and last county senior title. Aside from the medals on offer, neither set of players will be lacking in motivation to play the game of their lives when the ball is throw in at 3.30pm.

A power-packed display from start to finish propelled Garrycastle into this year’s county decider in impressive fashion. This game had the potential to be the game of the championship but in truth, given its one-sided nature, it failed to live up to its billing.

Garrycastle 1-8

Two Westmeath clubs go in search of a coveted place in a Leinster final this weekend. It has been a long and successful season already for the footballers of Garrycastle and Tubberclair but, without a doubt, all of their achievements up until now will pale into insignificance should either team win this weekend.

This Sunday the Leinster club final is well worth the trip to Tullamore to see Garrycastle take on Portlaoise at 2pm in what promises to be a top class game.

We may still have a few weeks to wait before we reach the full height of the festive season but the football community of south Westmeath and indeed beyond will be hoping that both Garrycastle and Tubberclair can deliver an early Christmas present to the county. A Leinster title for either side would be a momentous achievement and, should they complete an unprecedented Leinster senior and intermediate club double, celebrations in south Westmeath would last well into the new year.