Footballers face the "acid test" on Sunday

Leinster Football ChampionshipNext weekend sees the start of Westmeath"s Leinster Football Championship campaign when Tomás Ó Flatharta"s charges take on Wicklow in Tullamore.As this is the first match for Westmeath in this year"s championship it is hard to say exactly how it will go, based on poor league performance and being relegated from Division 1.It is important for Westmeath football that a win is secured. Westmeath will need to approach this match in a positive frame as Wicklow have already had one successful outing against Longford, and while there are going to be some debutants on the Westmeath team the experience of Gavin, Heavin, Dolan and Glennon should see Westmeath through even if it is only by a small margin.Verdict: Westmeath.Ticket InformationTickets can be bought from the following locations, Leinster Council Office,Portlaoise, by sending a cheque or postal order and a SAE. Tickets will be issued by return post, or by credit card (057) 8682000. There is a €4 administration charge on all credit card transactions.Local County Board (available from office in Cusack Park Mullingar from Monday, June 8 during working hours).Ticket Prices are as follows: Stand Tickets €20, Terrace Tickets €15; Family Tickets: 1Adult 2 Children etc; Stand tickets: Adults €20 Children €5; Terrace Tickets: Adults €15 Children €5; Students and Senior Citizens: Stand Tickets to be purchased at full price and on the day of math they can claim a rebate of €10 when they produce the appropriate ID at the designated stile prior to entry into the stadium. Terrace Tickets to be purchased at full price and on the day of match they can claim a rebate of €5 when they produce the appropriate ID at the designated stile prior to entry into stadium. Wheelchair Tickets: The Wheelchair tickets are free and the assistant ticket is €20; Group Passes: Passes are provided for groups of children Under 16 (you are permitted to bring one adult free with every 10 children) any additional adults pay full price for their tickets.Coaching and GamesPlay and Stay FootballThe final day for football will take play this coming Saturday, June 13. All teams are asked to be at their respective venues for 10.30am with an expected finishing time of 12.30pm. Venues and teams are as follows:Kinnegad (Co-Ordinator Gary Sammon: 086-8963150): Teams - Coralstown/Kinnegad, Killucan, Delvin, St. Pauls, Tyrrellspass, The Downs, Milltownpass, St. Mary"s, RochfortbridgeSpringfield: (Co-Ordinator: James Heffernan 087-6460030): Teams - Mullingar Shamrocks, St. Michaels, Kilbeggan/St. Josephs, Multyfarnham, St. Fintans, Shandonagh, St. Loman"s, Mullingar, St. Malachys/Ballinagore, BunbrosnaRosemount:(Co-Ordinator: Eddie Bouabbse 086-2609820): Teams - Rosemount, Athlone, Garrycastle, Moate All Whites, Caulry, Castledaly, Tubberclair, Maryland/Tang, Millmore GaelsNote: Final day for Hurling the following Saturday morning (June 20) with all games in Robinstown.Import Public Health Alert to all Course/Camp OrganisersThe Health Service Executive (HSE) advises that summer Gaeltachts, other summer language colleges and sports camps should be aware of the possibility of mumps or influenza infection among their students.MumpsThere is currently a large national outbreak of mumps in Ireland with more than 2,700 cases notified so far this year compared with 213 cases for the same period last year. To find out more about mumps and why it is important to make sure your students are protected against it, goto www.mumps.ie or if you have a further query by calling 1850 241850. Should a suspected case of mumps occur in a student attending Summer Camp please contact a local general practitioner who will advise on appropriate follow up.Influenza A(H1N1)The World Health Organization pandemic influenza alert is currently at level 5 which means that there is a high risk of a pandemic developing.Should a suspected case of flu occur in a student attending summer camps, please contact a local general practitioner by phone, who will access the situation and arrange appropriate follow up as required. You can find out more at www.hpsc.ie or www.hse.ie and the HSE Flu Information Line,Freephone:1800 94 11 00.Detailed guidelines on how to plan for human infections withthe Influenza A (H1N1) will be available on the Health Protection Surveillance Centrewebsite www.hpsc.ie.Please alert staff, students and parents to this information on the websites listed or via the information lines given and check regularly for updates.Westmeath Sports PartnershipVolunteer SeminarThe Westmeath Sports partnership will hold a Volunteer Seminar,which takes place on June 11from 8 - 10pm (registration from 7.30pm) at Belvedere House and Gardens, Mullingar.The seminar is a great opportunity for all organisations that rely on volunteers to attend and perhaps learn from the experience and wisdom of our guest speakers.Note of warningPlease note that at some venues across the country there has been an increase in the nature of thefts in dressingrooms during matches. We ask Clubs to be vigilant during games in their grounds.GAA 125 CelebrationsAs part of our GAA 125th Year Celebrations, a Club Wall will be erected outside the entrance to the GAA Museum in Croke Park. The role of the club forms a central part of the GAA and in recognition of this every GAA club will have their club crest represented on this wall. The County Development Officers, together with O"Neills are currently collecting all club crests.The co-operation of every club both in Ireland and oversees is key to ensuring that the 'Falla na gClubanna' truly represents all GAA clubs, and in this regard I would ask clubs to work with County Development Officer - Paddy Collins, to ensure all club crests are included.The deadline for the collection of crests is June 30. Please have your club crest with Paddy before this date.CongratulationsAs the county was gripped by election fever last weekend I would like to congratulate all those Councillors who were elected to represent the people of Westmeath on the County Council and various Town Councils in Westmeath, in particular both Aidan Davitt and John Shaw who were first time runners and are both heavily involved in Westmeath GAA. Aidan is Irish Language Officer on the County Board, while John is still a playing member of the county senior hurling team.Westmeath GAA Development LottoThe winning numbers last week were 1, 4, 12 and 15. There were nine Match 3 winners who each won €36.Thomas O"Connor C/O Ballinagore GAA; Maree Baker C/O Ballinagore GAA; Tom Baker C/O Ballinagore GAA; Joe Lyster C/O Westmeath Ladies GAA; Billy Macken C/O St. Oliver Plunketts GAA; Kevin Kennedy C/O St. Oliver Plunketts GAA; Tony Donoghue C/O St. Oliver Plunketts GAA; Greg McKeever C/O St. Oliver Plunketts GAA; Sean Murphy C/O St. Loman"s, Mullingar GAA.ResultsJFC Sect A: Mullingar Shamrocks 1-8 Milltown 2-5; St. Loman"s, Mullingar 1-7 St. Josephs 0-4; St. Pauls 0-15 Ballycomoyle 0-4; Caulry 3-12 Loughnavalley 0-6JFC Sect B: Garrycastle 2-7 Castledaly 3-8; Athlone 1-7 St. Fintan"s, Multyfarnham 1-7; Coralstown/Kinnegad 3-10 Delvin 0-3JHC "A": Castlepollard 1-13 Lough Lene Gaels 1-16; Brownstown 0-13 Castletown-Geoghegan 0-12; Ringtown 1-6 St. Oliver Plunketts 2-16; Raharney 0-12 Clonkill 1-10;JHC "B": Delvin 0-11 St. Brigids 6-12; Cullion 2-14 Southern Gaels 2-4; Fr. Daltons 1-11, Turin 3-11ACHL Div 3: Castlepollard w/o Brownstown scratch; Ringtown 2-12 Castletown-Geoghegan 3-13ACHL Div 4: Southern Gaels 3-11 Crookedwood 5-7; Fr. Daltons 0-12 St. Brigids 2-15WebsitesSenior: http://www.westmeathgaa.ie/Minor: http://coistenanog.westmeath.gaa.ieContactI can be contacted by phone on 044 9666476, 087 2777987 or by email on paddreilly@eircom.net