Captain thanks fans for Croke Park support

Thomas Lyons

There is much talk of the importance of the 16th man following Westmeath’s Leinster Final win over Dublin in the capital. That’s because the team who took to the pitch at 2pm on Sunday were augmented by an overwhelming number of fans who travelled for the clash.

This wasn’t simply a 15-man achievement. Nor was it the panel of 32 that Mark McHugh has built a remarkable team from. Not even the players who have continued to contribute after injury. It’s even more than the back room staff that make sure every facet of the team is honed to a professional standard.

In the aftermath of the game, captain Ronan Wallace acknowledged the supporters: “It was a serious crowd there today from Westmeath and they’re a credit.”

Wallace said the level of support did not come as a surprise to him: “They’ve been unbelievable over the last number of weeks, the Meath and the Kildare games and then again today. When you’re feeling a bit low on energy, you just get that boost after a score or a turnover, you just feel a lift from them.

“It’s just unbelievable to see their hard work coming up here, spending their money, coming up supporting us.”

Though the days of pitch invasions in Croke Park are a thing of the past, the winning team endeavoured to interact with fans after the game by making their way to Hill 16 after the final whistle.

The scene was set by the pastel colours of the discarded rain ponchos behind the ‘Ultras’ on the Hill. Those boisterous fans provided a leaping, pulsing backdrop to the team photo, the young men clumped together on the grass holding the Delaney Cup.

Mark McHugh, in typical attention to detail, spoke of the importance of building on that support: “I already spoke to the county board. I feel we should probably have an open session sometime this week for the kids.”

He lauded the fans for their contribution: “They were a big part of us today, I’m sure many of youse heard that roar out on the field today. We heard it on the sideline. We outnumbered Dublin by so much today, if you looked around, it was just maroon everywhere.”

The Westmeath manager hopes it will continue: “There were a few ‘Ultras’ there, up in the middle of the Hill causing a bit of hassle,” he joked, “that’s what we need. I remember going to the college games, those Athlone and Mullingar college finals.

“There was the Green Brigade from Athlone, they were coming up with their flares, and I looked at one of my coaching staff, and I said, ‘how do we get them to our games?’ We figured the way was to win.”He says his charges have bought into the bargain, and hopes the public will continue to reciprocate: “We’d like to give the county a team to support. We’ll do that with hard-work and dedication to the jersey.”