THERE WERE TWO landslide home wins in the preliminary quarter-finals of the Tailteann Cup today.
But while no-one will be hugely surprised by Offaly recording a comfortable victory over New York at Tullamore, Westmeath’s crushing 17-point win over Laois in Mullingar has nailed down the Lake County as the team to beat in the second-tier competition.
Laois never reached the heights that they scaled in last Saturday’s dramatic 3-18 to 3-16 win over Offaly, but Westmeath never allowed their fellow midlanders to get off the ground.
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Even on a day when Trevor Collins put in a superb performance to curb dangerman Luke Loughlin, the rest of the Westmeath team stepped up with a superb all round performance.
First among equals was midfielder Sam McCartan, who hoisted over two outstanding two-pointers in the first half and went on to score 0-8 from play in an outstanding effort. Team captain Ronan Wallace was also imperious, scoring 1-5, including goal after the first-half hooter that came from a move that began with a McCartan turnover.
Loughlin also found the net with a penalty, as Westmeath took a 2-12 to 0-7 lead into the dressing room.
The third quarter was a landslide, with Matthew Whittaker adding a third goal with a superb finish, while McCartan and Wallace both kicked highlight reel scores in a 1-10 to 0-2 run.
Laois were a broken team by the end, and Jonah Kelly’s goal – also after the hooter – will be scant consolation at the end of a tough evening.
Offaly had a similar margin of victory as they went through the motions against New York. Dylan Hyland was their talisman, kicking 1-12, including a fortunate goal at the very end of their wind-assisted first half.
Given some of the comebacks that have been seen under the new rules, 1-14 to 0-2 at half-time might have been seen as retrievable because a deceptively strong breeze was set to favour New York in the second half, while Offaly racked up 11 first half wides and several other missed opportunities.
Instead Ruairí McNamee kicked 1-2 off the bench as they pulled 18 points clear before a New York rally late on, inspired by a goal of the season contender from Bobby O’Regan, salvaged something from the game for the Exiles.
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Westmeath and Offaly rack up wide-margin wins to book quarter-final spots
THERE WERE TWO landslide home wins in the preliminary quarter-finals of the Tailteann Cup today.
But while no-one will be hugely surprised by Offaly recording a comfortable victory over New York at Tullamore, Westmeath’s crushing 17-point win over Laois in Mullingar has nailed down the Lake County as the team to beat in the second-tier competition.
Laois never reached the heights that they scaled in last Saturday’s dramatic 3-18 to 3-16 win over Offaly, but Westmeath never allowed their fellow midlanders to get off the ground.
Even on a day when Trevor Collins put in a superb performance to curb dangerman Luke Loughlin, the rest of the Westmeath team stepped up with a superb all round performance.
First among equals was midfielder Sam McCartan, who hoisted over two outstanding two-pointers in the first half and went on to score 0-8 from play in an outstanding effort. Team captain Ronan Wallace was also imperious, scoring 1-5, including goal after the first-half hooter that came from a move that began with a McCartan turnover.
Loughlin also found the net with a penalty, as Westmeath took a 2-12 to 0-7 lead into the dressing room.
The third quarter was a landslide, with Matthew Whittaker adding a third goal with a superb finish, while McCartan and Wallace both kicked highlight reel scores in a 1-10 to 0-2 run.
Laois were a broken team by the end, and Jonah Kelly’s goal – also after the hooter – will be scant consolation at the end of a tough evening.
Offaly had a similar margin of victory as they went through the motions against New York. Dylan Hyland was their talisman, kicking 1-12, including a fortunate goal at the very end of their wind-assisted first half.
Given some of the comebacks that have been seen under the new rules, 1-14 to 0-2 at half-time might have been seen as retrievable because a deceptively strong breeze was set to favour New York in the second half, while Offaly racked up 11 first half wides and several other missed opportunities.
Instead Ruairí McNamee kicked 1-2 off the bench as they pulled 18 points clear before a New York rally late on, inspired by a goal of the season contender from Bobby O’Regan, salvaged something from the game for the Exiles.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
GAA Gaelic Football Tailteann Cup