Impressive Castletown Geoghegan reach SHC final

Castletown Geoghegan 3-26, St Oliver Plunkett's 3-15

Castletown Geoghegan once again showed they are major contenders in the race for the Westmeath Examiner Cup with an 11-point victory over St Oliver Plunkett's at Killucan on Sunday evening confirming their place in them county final.

This officially confirmed that Raharney's reign is over and there will be new Westmeath senior hurling champions for 2024.

Castletown announced a statement of intent in their victory, as 3-26 is an impressive score-line to put up at any level, but in truth, they were that good.

They are now one game away from black and amber ribbons on the Westmeath Examiner Cup in Cusack Park when county final day comes around, while St Oliver Plunkett’s time in the Section A Senior Hurling Championship has drawn to a close.

This match will be remembered as a fast-paced contest where no-one could draw breath for even a second. It only took 15 seconds for Niall O’Brien to register the game opening point, before David Gavin and Liam Carey off the shoulder put the Saints a point ahead after two minutes.

In the sixth minute, Shane Omsby would find his shot along the endline go beyond Ciaran O’Brien and into the Castletown net, a fortuitous goal.

The men in black and amber would have seven on the board by the eighth minute, four before Omsby’s goal, thanks to Niall O’Brien, Peter Clarke, David O’Reilly and Conor Murphy. Castletown were three in-front by the 17th minute when Plunkett’s would strike for their second goal, when a two-on-two found David Gavin collecting the ball and sliding his effort into the net.

Castletown followed suit five minutes later, as David O’Reilly received possession, ran inside the Plunkett’s defence and fired past Conor Lynch to squeeze his team three to the good once again.

Patrick Lynam and Matthew Cunningham would score for Plunkett’s while Morgan Gavigan, Padraig Kane and Niall O’Brien would leave Castletown Geoghegan 1-15 to 1-9 ahead at half-time. Now everyone could take a breath.

Castletown Geoghegan had extended their lead out to four by the eighth minute, and the lead grew to seven when after losing his stick, David O’Reilly hand-passed the sliotar to Jack Gallagher who fired low and hard to earn his goal.

A brace of frees in response from Patrick Lynam was met by five unanswered points from Castletown; Niall O’Brien with three of them, and the other two shared between Conor Murphy and David O’Reilly.

Hope was restored for the Robinstown side when Patrick Lynam showed good strength and skill to find Thomas Meehan, who made no mistake in-front of goal.

Aongus Clarke would seal a place in the county final though for Castletown when he collected a loose high ball and found the net on the 60 minute mark.

Niall O’Brien and substitute Sean Jackson would seal a double-digit victory in added-time for the black and amber men, and when the full-time whistle blew, Castletown could delight, while the hearts of St Oliver Plunkett’s and Raharney were heard breaking in the distance.

Scorers - Castletown Geoghegan: Niall O’Brien 0-11 (0-6 frees), David O’Reilly 1-3, Aongus Clarke (0-1 free) and Jack Gallagher 1-2 each, Morgan Gavigan, Peter Clarke and Conor Murphy 0-2 each, Padraig Kane and Sean Jackson 0-1 each.

St Oliver Plunkett’s: David Gavin 1-3 (0-2 frees), Patrick Lynam 0-6 (0-5 frees), Shane Omsby and Thomas Meehan 1-0 each, Conor Lynch (0-1 free, 0-1’65) and Matthew Cunningham 0-2 each, Liam Carey and Aaron Craig 0-1 each.

Castletown Geoghegan: Ciaran O’Brien; Padraig Kane, Johnny Birmingham, David Maloney; Peter Murphy, Jack Murphy, Morgan Gavigan; David Fennell, Peter Clarke; Conor Murphy, Aongus Clarke, Liam Varley; Niall O’Brien, David O’Reilly, Jack Gallagher. Subs used: Shane Clavin for Liam Varley (52), Naoisa McKenna for Peter Murphy (55), Mark Keeney for Jack Gallagher (58), Sean Jackson for Conor Murphy (62).

St Oliver Plunkett’s: Conor Lynch; Zach Aherne, Thomas Turks, Aaron Griffin; Liam Carey, Aaron Craig, Colm O’Leary; Patrick Lynam, Shane Omsby; Cathal Craig, David Gavin, Nathan Cornally; Matthew Cunningham, Ciaran Curley, John Fry. Subs used: Sean Kelly for Cathal Craig (15), Stephen McManus for Aaron Griffin (28), Thomas Meehan for Nathan Cornally (48).

Referee: Barry Nea (Turin).

Examiner's Eye on the game

Man of the Match

Niall O’Brien (Castletown Geoghegan): The corner-forward was in fine form for Castletown Geoghegan, his accuracy from frees and from play ensuring his team stayed on top throughout the match. He gets the nod ahead of other contenders, with team mates Morgan Gavigan and Peter Clarke also producing fine performances for the county finalists.

Moment of the Match

Aongus Clarke’s goal in the 60th minute was the killer blow for St Oliver Plunkett’s, as the Robinstown men were seven adrift and still had hope of a late revival. Clarke’s finish extinguished these hopes, and with it, the final was assured for Castletown Geoghegan, who never let up their relentless pressure in this contest, and never let their opponent’s breathe easily at any stage.

Score of the Match

Morgan Gavigan’s point in the 33rd minute was a great example of determination. The Castletown Geoghegan half-back showed great strength to get his shot off from the side-line and from a tight angle, scoring a super point for his team. This put Castletown four in front at the time, and the men in black and amber kept the momentum going after this score to charge their way through to victory.

Entertainment Value - 9/10.