In conversation with Paul O’Donovan
“I would look to my left and I would be marking Henry Shefflin and on another day it would be Joe Canning or Sean Óg O’Halpin. Those were great days in the Westmeath jersey,” said former Westmeath hurler Brendan Murtagh as he reflected on his playing days with his beloved county.
Murtagh, who played with Westmeath for the past 20 years before retiring from inter county level last November, took time out this week to talk to Topic and look back at the highs and lows of playing with Westmeath.
However, before local club teams get excited and before the Clonkill faithful get worried, Murtagh has not retired from club hurling and still aims to add a few more senior county championship titles to the nine he has already won, the last three of which he was captain.
On top of winning nine Westmeath senior hurling titles with Clonkill, Murtagh has also won an All-Ireland Intermediate Club medal, a Leinster League Club title, three Christy Ring Cup medals with Westmeath and two National League Division 2 medals, not to mention representing Leinster in the Railway Cup and Ireland at Shinty.
Murtagh’s skills haven’t been restricted to just the small ball as he has also won two senior football championship medals with The Downs in 2003 and 2005, – a club Brendan’s father Christy was Chairman of for a number of years.
