I’ll start with a couple of truths. This is not the article I had written originally. My sixth-class teacher back in 1999 told us to never ‘assume’ anything because you make an ‘ass’ of ‘u’ and ‘me’. So, I’ve filed the original piece away as a reminder to stay in the present. Although I did enjoy rewatching Westmeath versus Kildare from 1992 online. Secondly, this one is being written after I watch the highlights (or lowlights) or what will surely go down as one of the more unexpected defeats for Westmeath football.
I’d rather not go into it in detail but some things have to be said. Only Waterford, Fermanagh, and Monaghan conceded more in the league than Wicklow but even the two Ulster sides fired considerably better tallies overall in attack. We are the Division 3 Champions. The same division that Wicklow were relegated from. We are two tiers ahead of them in 2025. The Garden County hit the net once in seven outings. Even manager, Oisín McConville, admitted the last year for him and Wicklow has been anything but ideal on and off the pitch. And yet, despite everything pointing towards a Westmeath win, it went completely pear-shaped.
