Inny FC: 3
Killavilla: 1
Last Sunday, Inny FC became the Leicester City of Westmeath soccer. Winners of their first league title, after starting the season as relegation favourites, the Streete-based club earned promotion to the CCFL Senior Division, just six years after joining the league.
Back-to-back promotions had already been secured two weeks previously after a 6-1 win in Tullamore. A week later, the Hyland Cup was claimed – the third cup the club has won in four seasons. And now the League is added to their CV.
So, seven years after four friends, Keith Thompson, Clifford Thompson, Brendan O’Callaghan and Owen Moran sat in Meehan’s Bar in Coole and talked about setting up their own soccer club, the following has happened: three promotions, seven cup semi-final appearances, four cup finals, three cup wins and now – as of last Sunday – a league title.
They did it the hard way, too. Trailing 1-0 after 12 minutes, they fought back valiantly, Mark Connaughton – the club’s Irish Colleges international – scoring an equaliser just before half time, when he wisely was on hand to follow up Niall Fagan’s free-kick, which the Killavilla keeper partially saved.
Now on level terms, the tension notably eased. And when Max Brady – the Jamie Vardy of this Inny side – looped in a header from the edge of the area, following Darragh O’Connor’s superb cross, the tide had turned. Ten minutes later, Niall Fagan scored the third – his 150th goal in four seasons of senior soccer – and it was game, set, match and championship.
