Penalty save helps Westmeath secure victory over Down

Westmeath 2-9, Down 1-10

Some fine attacking and defending at crucial periods helped Westmeath to get over the line against Down in the first round of the TG4 Intermediate Football Championship last Sunday.

A fine start for the Lake County was gradually clawed back by the Ulster side which set up a tense and exciting second half. But the home team managed to hold out and collect the first points of the campaign at Moynihan Park, Ballynacargy.

Following their recent Leinster success, manager Frank Browne was able to name another fairly settled team and the early signs were good defensively as Lara McCartan, Sarah Murphy and team captain Fiona Coyle all put in early tackles. Down got off the mark through Eva Hicks, before the experienced duo of Sarah Dillon and Anna Jones combined for Dillon to slot over.

Down’s key player on the day, Eimear Fitzpatrick was regularly in possession and her first free got her side into the lead again. Anna Jones responded quickly with a nice point before Sarah Dillon and Lucy McCartan tagged on scores to put Westmeath ahead. With the game operating at flying pace at both ends, any goal was always going to be key.

On twelve minutes, the first of the two Westmeath goals arrived. Sarah Dillon, central to everything early on, struck from distance into the blue sky only for her shot to drop on top of Down goalkeeper Catherine Byrne. Caoimhe Kilmurray and Jones both read the potential shot dropping short and by putting pressure on Byrne, the ball ended up in the net.

With the pace showing no sign of letting up, Westmeath were soon in for their second goal. If the first had a touch of good fortune, this one was anything but. Lucy McCartan fired an incredibly accurate ball between two Down defenders to the on-running Caoimhe Kilmurray, who punched the ball into the net after the hop.

Westmeath's lead of 2-5 to 0-3 was fully merited but Down proved to be no pushovers. Two frees for Fitzpatrick and an Aoife Laverty point before the half-time whistle brought them back into it. At the break, Westmeath led 2-5 to 0-6.

The second half saw Down adopt a different approach by going more direct at the heart of the Westmeath defence. However, the home side's defending began with their forwards and with the industrious Gráinne Byrne and midfielders Vicky Carr and Ayesha Roche helping out their backlines, it was a tough task for Down.

Over eight minutes elapsed before anybody added a score but it certainly was a memorable one. Down began a move in their own half and through a series of handpasses, Niamh Rice took possession, dropped the shoulder, and blasted the ball passed Aoife Temple.

Fitzpatrick added another point to suddenly reduce the gap to one. Vicky Carr calmed the home nerves with a nice point after linking with Roche, Byrne, and Lucy Power. This was followed by a point from Kilmurray and now the scoreboard showed a goal between the sides – 2-7 to 1-7.

Entering the final minutes, the tension was palpable around the sidelines. After Down added another score from Laoise Duffy, substitute Vivienne McCormack won the resulting kickout and burst forward before being fouled, with referee Shane Curley awarding a penalty. With the venue silent, Aoife Temple dived expertly to deny Fitzpatrick from the spot and cement the lead for Westmeath.

The breakout from the home team was clinical as Sarah Dillon finished the move with a point. The game continued to live on a knife edge as Fitzpatrick’s free and a Rice point brought the gap back to two.

As time was running out, Westmeath adopted a risky keep-ball approach but given their fitness and skills, they were able to see out the remaining minutes for a vital victory.

Scorers – Westmeath: S Dillon 1-2, C Kilmurray 1-1, A Jones 0-3 (1f), V Carr 0-2, L McCartan 0-1. Down: E Fitzpatrick 0-5 (4f), N Rice 1-1, E Hicks, N McClory, A Laverty, L Duffy 0-1 each.

Westmeath: Aoife Temple; Lara McCartan, Sarah Murphy, Fiona Coyle; Chloe Gonoud, Lucy Power, Susanna Buckley; Vicky Carr, Ayesha Roche; Lucy McCartan, Sarah Dillon, Tracey Dillon; Gráinne Byrne, Anna Jones, Caoimhe Kilmurray. Subs used: Pip Ruane for T Dillon (50).

Down: Catherine Byrne; Aimee Greene, Ciara McCreanor, Niamh McClory; Ciara Mulvenna, Aoife Brogan, Erin Sands; Meghan Doherty, Aoife Laverty; Eimear Fitzpatrick, Laoise Duffy, Niamh McGrath; Niamh King, Niamh Rice, Eva Hicks. Subs used: Vivienne McCormack for Hicks (42), Shanna Fettes for McClory (42), Áine Smyth for King (52).

Referee: Shane Curley (Galway).