Westmeath Minor Football Championship: Mullingar Shamrocks 6-9 Killucan 3-8

Scores were initially slow in coming in this minor football championship match between Mullingar Shamrocks and Killucan played in Killucan on Wednesday evening but then they arrived by the bucketful like the torrential rain that fell in the hours before the match. Wind-assisted Killucan inspired by the fine play and great kicking of centre-forward Eoin Ahearne, enjoyed a two-point interval lead (1-5 to 1-3). Shamrocks scorers in the opening half were Cormac Hynes (1-1), Kenneth O’Reilly (0-1) and Jack Gillen (0-1). Shamrocks resumed in sharper form and a Jack Gillen point and Dylan Murphy got the vital touch to score a goal. Two great passing movements involving several Shamrocks players ended with Jack Gillen blasting goals on both occasions. Killucan responded with two points (4-4 to 1-7). Padraig McKenna was dominant at this stage and added a point to the Shamrocks total; so too did Kenneth and John O’Reilly. Jack Gillen completed his hat-trick when he collected a Padraig McKenna rocket that rebounded crashed off the crossbar. It seemed like game-over but Killucan responded with two goals before Dillon Matthews guaranteed the Shamrocks victory with a fine goal that proved to be the final score of the night (6-9 to 3-8).  

Mullingar Shamrocks: Eoin Kilduff; Brian Reidy (Jack Kelly), Conor Fitzpatrick, Peter Bane; Cormac Darby, Marc Evers, Sean Wylie; Padraig McKenna (0-2) and Dillon Matthews (1-0); Jack Gillen (3-2), Cormac Hynes (1-1), Brandon Heffernan (John O’Reilly 0-1); Cian Roe, Kenneth O’Reilly (0-3), Adam McCormack (Dylan Murphy 1-0)