Three first half goals help The Downs to a comfortable victory

The Downs 3-13, Coralstown/Kinnegad 0-10

By Gerry Buckley

The Downs, last year’s somewhat unlucky runners-up in the Westmeath senior football final, laid down a real marker in TEG Cusack Park last Saturday evening that they will be making a serious attempt to have black and amber ribbons adorning the Flanagan Cup come October, as they eased past a disappointing challenge from Coralstown/Kinnegad in their first robin game of 2025.

Both sides were short a couple of highly-rated players, but Dermot Power’s troops – and no subs were brought on - looked fit and focused all through, with three goals in the first moiety, while playing against the wind, effectively deciding the issue by the interval. The men in red and white never got going, and an indicator of their untypically poor display can be gauged by the fact that neither of their midfielders and none of their forwards scored from play over the hour-plus.

Wind-assisted Coralstown/Kinnegad opened the scoring via a fine solo point from the lively Eoghan Bracken in the second minute. However, great play from the ever-threatening Tom Tuite teed up Niall Mitchell – whose menacing presence close to the losers’ goalmouth was evident from the start – who slapped the ball home from point-blank range in the fourth minute. A routine free by Luke Loughlin was cancelled out by a lovely point from play by Liam Daly. A classy one-pointer from Loughlin ensued, but a two-pointer from a free by Ger Leech left the gap at the bare minimum (1-2 to 0-4) at the end of the opening quarter.

The latter’s brother Dan was wide when he ought to have goaled in the 16th minute after eye-catching work by Brían Cooney. Tuite slotted over a free to double the winners’ advantage, but a converted free by Ger Leech and a great point under pressure from Bracken levelled the contest (1-3 to 0-6) with 20 minutes elapsed.

The game soon turned dramatically when The Downs scored a brace of quickfire goals. A deft flick by Mitchell teed up Loughlin for a quality soccer-style finish, and the green flag was hardly back in its slot when a misdirected kick-out allowed Tuite to find the net from close range. Another clever pass from Mitchell to Loughlin resulted in Westmeath’s top scorer this year pointing from open play. Loughlin turned provider on the half-hour mark as Conor Coughlan opened his account with a fisted score. Ger Leech’s routine free in injury-time still left Coralstown/Kinnegad with a mountain to climb, as they trailed by 3-5 to 0-7 at half-time.

The margin remained at seven points when Tuite (a free) and Podge Quinn (at the end of a laboured move) traded points early in the second moiety. Andrew Kilmartin (a great individual effort) and Leech (a straightforward free) also exchanged points, but the 2022 champions increased their advantage with four unanswered points by the 48th minute to lead by 3-11 to 0-9. The scores came courtesy of Ian Martin (who might have goaled), Loughlin (a two-point gift to a man of his calibre), and Coughlan (a low-trajectory effort).

A nicely-curled free from Leech brought a wasteful Coralstown/Kinnegad to double figures in the 50th minute before Martin doubled his tally at the end of a flowing move. The game had long since fizzled out as a contest, and the dynamic duo of Loughlin and Tuite combined for the latter to wrap up the scoring with a neat point in injury-time.

Scorers –

The Downs: L Loughlin 1-5 (1 2pt, 1f), T Tuite 1-3 (2f), N Mitchell 1-0, C Coughlan, I Martin 0-2 each, A Kilmartin 0-1.

Coralstown/Kinnegad: G Leech 0-6 (1 2ptf, 4f), E Bracken 0-2, P Quinn, L Daly

0-1 each.

The Downs: Trevor Martin; Eanna Burke, Peter Murray, Joe Moran; Conor Coughlan, Ciaran Nolan, Liam Faulkner; Kevin O’Sullivan, Niall Mitchell; Lorcan Mullen, Billy Moffatt, Ian Martin; Luke Loughlin, Andrew Kilmartin, Tom Tuite.

Coralstown/Kinnegad: Stephen McNevin; Podge Quinn, Danny Woods, Eoghan

Bracken; Ciaran Daly Snr, Conor Callaghan, Liam Daly; Ciaran Daly Jnr, Darren Giles; Rory Cole, Brían Cooney, Eoin O’Brien; Dan Leech, Jack Cole, Ger Leech. Sub used: David Giles for Bracken (52).

Ref: Enda Kelly (Castledaly).