League and championship the focus for Fortune

Following the heavy defeat to Dublin in the Walsh Cup last night (Thursday), Westmeath manager Joe Fortune insisted his focus is primarily on the league and championship this year, and he is aiming to add some new players to his squad to strengthen their chances.

Westmeath are working off a panel of 38 players at present and it will be cut again for the Allianz Hurling League which starts in February. The manager said he was really pleased with the first half display, but he was unimpressed with his side’s performance after the break as Dublin surged ahead to win by 22 points in the end.

“It’s important to give players their debut. The other option is to mind players for the league and Joe McDonagh Cup, but out of respect for the competition, we wanted to bring players up and give them the opportunity (against Dublin). For 25 minutes we were okay, but any changes we made, our work rate just dropped massively. Any players Dublin brought in made a huge impact,” observed Fortune.

He felt there was a contrast in the condition of players and it’s an area Westmeath seem to be playing catch-up in.

“The second half wasn’t good enough: Dublin’s athleticism, movement; their running game absolutely opened us up. Darragh Egerton and Niall Mitchell were the only two on the pitch who played for us last year. So do you put the U20s out? Do you disrespect the competition? Or do you use your senior panel and give players a chance,” he mused.

“The players are training: we have done an eight-week block and players deserved a chance, but some of the mistakes we made in the second half were disappointing.”

Overall, there were some positives from a Westmeath perspective and they will now meet Antrim on Sunday (Kinnegad, 1.30pm) in the next round.

“I thought Darragh Clinton was really good tonight: he worked really hard. David Williams showed flashes of his best; he’s probably disappointed to miss three frees, at this level you can’t. Micheál Daly had a very good club campaign with Lough Lene Gaels and he did well, I felt. But we let them out too easily in the second half and that happens when you don’t have your Killians and Ciarans (Doyle) inside,” remarked Fortune.

He was was also enthused by the displays of Rian Holding, Conor Gaffney and Kevin Regan, but he feels such a short turnaround puts pressure on a county like Westmeath.

“If you had the week gap to get young players ready to go again it would be great. You’re pushing fixtures and then you have six or seven players who are getting ready for colleges hurling. It’s a lot to ask young players at this time of year. They want to play games, but it’s a short turnaround,” he said.

Fortune is hoping players such as Charlie McCormack, Adam Ennis and Eoghan Keyes will add to his side’s chances on Sunday against Antrim, but experienced players like Killian Doyle and Tommy Doyle are still nursing injuries. However, the manager is taking heart from the fact that Westmeath are now playing at a higher level and players are being introduced to the game against the likes of Dublin, who are targeting a provincial title, at least, this year.

“The Walsh Cup is about looking at players. This is a development process: you won’t win anything on the 4th of January, but you’ll see who has the stomach for it, maybe,” he added.

Competing with Dublin, who have 30 players on a development panel outside of their senior panel, is a major task for smaller counties.

“The numbers here (in Dublin) are colossal,” observed Fortune.

Westmeath begin their Allianz Hurling League campaign away to Galway on Saturday, February 3.