Browne filled with regrets and pride after Tyrone defeat

Frank Browne couldn’t conceal the painful nature of last Sunday’s defeat to Tyrone - but he was naturally very proud of the performance the Westmeath players delivered.

The Westmeath ladies manager admitted the All-Ireland semi-final loss in Carrick-on-Shannon was “heartbreaking” after his side saw their six-point wiped out late on, before Tyrone prevailed in extra-time - see report here

“Looking back on it, we probably should have closed it out in normal time. It’s very hard to take at the moment. It’s very raw because we were four up with 90 (seconds) to go,” he said.

“The heat out there was tough, but it was like that for Tyrone too. There’s no dishonour in losing when you give your best and we gave our best. We were beaten by a better team and that’s not dishonour.

"Dishonourable is not giving your best and everybody can be so proud of what these people have done and we’re so proud of them. But we’re still beaten and out of the championship and the dream is gone,” he continued.

There was a considerable amount of stoppage time played at the end of the second half. But Browne had no issue with this aspect of the game and he said the management team was aware through the fourth official of how long was left.

“We just couldn’t seem to hold the ball and we couldn’t seem to get ourselves out of trouble. Fair play to Tyrone, they were in last year’s All-Ireland final, you know, and we can’t take it away from them,” Browne remarked.

“We didn’t close it out and in the cold light of day, we probably only have ourselves to blame, but we gave everything we had. We were four points to nil down after ten minutes and I imagine people were saying this is the round robin game (which Tyrone won comprehensively) all over again.

“They came out in the second half and went four points up again, but we still dug in and got goals and put ourselves in the driving seat. That’s sport and that’s why we love it.

“For anybody watching the game, it was an absolutely superb game of football. In fairness, the girls gave it everything. There is no dishonour once you give everything you have. That’s all you can ever possibly do. Have we regrets? Absolutely, we have a million of them, but we’re still so proud of them,” added the Wexford native.

Westmeath lost team captain Fiona Coyle (though she came back on in extra-time) and Tracey Dillon to injuries, but Browne wasn’t making any excuses, and was heartened that his team gave it their all on the day.

Despite having lost to Tyrone by 22 points in last month’s round robin game, Browne always believed his side would be competitive in the semi-final rematch.

“We always knew what was in our camp. I know there was a lot of commentary during the week about that game and about what happened. But we knew we weren’t that bad. We worked very hard on trying to win their kickouts and we made a good bit of traction there. Like we said after the Cavan game, in a game like this you kind of throw the playbook out the window and you just hope you have enough done. They gave it everything they had and you just can’t fault anybody.

“Maybe what helped Tyrone is they operated in Division One this year and that gives you a bit of resilience,” said Browne, who agreed that Tyrone’s “strength on the bench” was a key factor. But he was pleased with how the Westmeath subs contributed, describing young Katie Kilmurray as “a real threat” when she came on in the second half. He said such players “are the future” for Westmeath.

Considering the young players involved in last Sunday’s game, Westmeath are capable of being strong contenders at intermediate level again next year. Browne agreed with this viewpoint but he stressed that they will start “at the bottom of the pile” next year just like every other team.