McCartan feels Westmeath can build on success next year
The journey ended with defeat to Monaghan in Clones on Sunday, but the Westmeath players have enjoyed a remarkable year and they have won the hearts of a new generation of followers.
Sam McCartan has been one of the leading lights in a memorable campaign that included only the county’s second ever Leinster SFC title. He said there was satisfaction in what has been achieved, but obviously they were hoping to keep the memorable run going. Playing one week after such a massive game in Salthill was a major ask, he felt.
“It’s been a great year, it’s a tough schedule, but I’m so proud of all the players involved and it feels great to bring a bit of excitement back to Westmeath football. It's been a while since we have gone on such a run. It’s never going to feel good finishing a season, unless you finish on the last day, but hopefully we will take this as a building block to go again next year,” McCartan remarked.
McCartan felt Monaghan were more accurate and took their scoring changes with greater efficiency, especially with the breeze behind them in the opening half.
“In a game like this it’s always going to come down to fine margins. We watched Monaghan last week against Roscommon where they managed the game clinically against the breeze and saw it out. We knew it wouldn’t be easy. They were probably just a little more switched on in their shooting and took their chances, whereas we didn’t. It’s tough,” he said.
McCartan was one of those very tightly marked in Sunday’s game as Monaghan got their match-ups spot on in the second half.
“I would always think the guys like Wally (Ronan Wallace) and Matty (Matthew Whittaker) would be tagged. Our guys are unbelievable; I would never have considered it would be me. So the lads said it to me during the week to get it in the head (that I would be man-marked). In fairness to Stephen (O’Hanlon), he’s an excellent fella; I wouldn’t have seen him as a marker per say, but he’s so fast and he stuck to his task. On the flip side, he got away and set up the goal. It was a very tough match-up,” he observed.
Mark McHugh has been a breath of fresh air on the sideline in his first year in charge of Westmeath and McCartan feels he has given the players renewed belief that they can compete at the highest level. He also praised the contribution of the entire backroom team.
“He is just great. You can’t say enough about him (McHugh). The whole crew have been great - Ryan (Daly), 'Archie' (Stephen Beattie), Jamie (Gonoud) and Emmet (McDonnell) - all the boys who contribute to it. The biggest thing is that bit of belief and playing with that bit of togetherness. We were just really going all out for each other and that has made a big difference for us,” he remarked.
The St Loman’s, Mullingar star feels Westmeath can build on the experience of this summer.
“It’s a very young team. James Mitchell was in goal for his debut (against Monaghan). Shane Ormsby came in and towered around the middle. It’s unbelievable. It’s just the faith the boys show in players - they see them training well and give them their chance. We can build on this,” he added.