Leinster SFC: Westmeath triumph after extra-time

Leinster SFC Semi-Final

Westmeath 2-21 Kildare 0-23

After extra-time

By Kevin Egan at Glenisk O'Connor Park

Westmeath will contest a Leinster senior football final for just the sixth time ever and the Lake County had to scrap and scrape every inch of the way to overcome Kildare.

As often happens, it was the break of the ball that made all the difference. Brían Cooney’s sensational first half goal from a narrow angle at the Park Avenue end of O’Connor Park was the score of the game in regulation time, and he tried to repeat the shot from a similar position towards the end of the first half of extra time.

Cian Burke parried Cooney’s shot this time, but the ball floated up and fell perfectly for Brandon Kelly to punch the ball towards goal, where it rolled a couple of inches inside the post.

Kildare threw everything they had into the second half of extra-time, but they could only muster up a single point in the final 10 minutes, while they were caught out with breakaway scores from Eoghan McCabe and Kelly.

While the two sides ended up with 13 wides apiece over the course of the 90 minutes, there was still a sense that Kildare left a lot more behind them.

Several of their wides were from uncontested shots that would be well inside the scoring zone, and they also had two goal chances of their own in the first half. Jason Daly’s full-length diving save to deny Eoin Cully was a vital intervention at a time when Westmeath were treading water trying to stay afloat, and not long after Daniel Scahill got in the way of a Darragh Kirwan shot from 10 metres out.

Cully and Ben Loakman still thrived in those early exchanges as Kildare worked the ball cleverly to create high percentage chances that pushed them 0-7 to 0-3 in front. Just as it was in last year’s quarter-final meeting between the two sides in St. Conleth’s Park, the battle between Ray Connellan and Kevin Feely at midfield was crucial, with Feely claiming three kickouts in the opening ten minutes.

Kevin O’Sullivan and Senan Baker kicked points 30 seconds apart to shift the game’s momentum, and after Cooney twisted and turned past Tommy Gill before slamming the ball to the roof of the net, the Lake County were four up.

Darragh Swords ended Kildare’s 14-minute scoring drought with a sublime double as Kildare cut the lead to one by half-time, drawing level through Cully’s score on the run immediately after the restart.

There was no separating the sides in a tense third quarter where the teams went score for score for the majority – that was until Sam McCartan hoisted over a fine two-point free.

Kildare looked to have much more energy in their legs in that final quarter with the absence of Matthew Whittaker and Luke Loughlin telling a tale, though some appalling finishing meant that it was only in the 67^th minute that they drew level through Darragh Kirwan.

Shane Allen gave Westmeath one more lead with a 35 metre effort, but after winning a free on the right wing with 60 seconds left, Westmeath opted to float the ball into the penalty area, where Kildare won the ball, cleared their lines and set up Alex Beirne for the equaliser with ten seconds left.

Kildare ran off the pitch with a spring in their step while Westmeath gasped for air and the first score after the restart, a majestic finish from Kirwan, backed up the impression that Kildare had more in the tank.

Not quite, as Westmeath found enough. Kevin O’Sullivan and Shane Corcoran came back on to give them some dynamism, Ronan Wallace surged forward to kick a point on the run, and Brandon Kelly’s nudge to the net sent the Westmeath supporters in the 12,086 crowd into raptures.

Scprers for Westmeath: Brandon Kelly 1-4, Sam McCartan 0-5 (2tpf), Brían Cooney 1-0, Ray Connellan 0-2 (1f), Senan Baker 0-2, Shane Corcoran 0-1, Kevin O’Sullivan 0-1, Tadhg Baker 0-1, Shane Allen 0-1, Ronan Wallace 0-1, Charlie Drumm 0-1, Robbie Forde 0-1, Eoghan McCabe 0-1

Scorers for Kildare: Eoin Cully 0-4, Darragh Kirwan 0-4, Ben Loakman 0-3, Alex Beirne 0-3 (1tpf), Darragh Swords 0-2 (tp), Jack Robinson 0-2, Tommy Gill 0-1, Kevin Feely 0-1, Callum Bolton 0-1, Brian McLoughlin 0-1f, Colm Moran 0-1

Westmeath: Jason Daly; Daniel Scahill, Charlie Drumm, Conor Dillon; Matthew Whittaker, Shane Allen, Sam McCartan; Brían Cooney, Ray Connellan; Kevin O'Sullivan, Ronan Wallace; Tadhg Baker; Brandon Kelly, Senan Baker, Shane Corcoran.

Subs: Shane Ormsby for Whittaker (15), Robbie Forde for O’Sullivan (51), Danny McCartan for S Baker (55), Ian Martin for Corcoran (60), Eoghan McCabe for Allen (69), O’Sullivan for McCabe (FT), Corcoran for Martin (FT), Adam Treanor for Dillon (FT), Whittaker for S McCartan (77), Jack Duncan for T Baker (83), McCabe for Ormsby (88).

Kildare: Cian Burke; Ryan Burke, Mark Dempsey, Harry O'Neill; Brian Byrne, Eoin Lawlor, James McGrath; Kevin Feely, Brendan Gibbons; Callum Bolton, Darragh Kirwan, Tommy Gill; Ben Loakman, Darragh Swords, Eoin Cully.

Subs: Ben McCormack for O’Neill (half-time), Alex Beirne for Loakman (45), Brian McLoughlin for Swords (51), Jack Robinson for Bolton (59), Colm Moran for McGrath (66), Pádraic Spillane for Gill (FT), Colm Dalton for R Burke (76), James Harris for Lawlor (79), Loakman for McCormack (86).

Referee: Martin McNally (Monaghan).