Westmeath GAA stats book dedicated to the late Paddy Flanagan
Mullingar native Gerry Buckley, a devoted supporter of Westmeath football and hurling, has released a new book capturing the essence of his county’s rich GAA history.
In a touching gesture, Gerry presented a copy to Kevin Flanagan, son of the late Paddy Flanagan, a legendary figure in Westmeath GAA. Paddy, who played for St Loman's, Mullingar and Westmeath, left a lasting legacy with the Flanagan Cup, which he donated to the county in 1963. As a former PRO and County Secretary, he excelled in administrative roles at both county and provincial levels, earning numerous accolades, including a President’s Award for his exemplary work on county final programmes. Paddy passed to his eternal reward in 2022 at the age of 91 and the book is dedicated to Paddy’s memory. A lovely profile adorns the inside cover.
Kevin expressed the Flanagan family’s heartfelt thanks to Gerry for this thoughtful tribute. The project is a heartfelt homage to Gerry and Paddy’s many years of friendship and Gerry is at pains to point out that without Paddy’s assistance, compiling books on the history of Westmeath GAA would not have been possible.
The book is available exclusively at TEG Cusack Park for €20 and promises to be a perfect Christmas gift for GAA enthusiasts. It represents Gerry’s meticulous effort to chronicle Westmeath’s inter-county exploits from the foundation of the GAA to the present day. Covering nearly 1,700 games, the book details teams, scorers, and opponents on a county-by-county basis for championship, league, and senior club championships. It also includes the recent hard-fought losses of St Loman’s, Mullingar and Castletown Geoghegan.
Gerry highlights the challenges of piecing together this history, noting the sparse match records in many provincial newspapers before the 1950s. Despite exhaustive research and help from record-keepers across counties, some gaps remain in the earlier years. Additionally, the book provides dates, venues, and scores for Westmeath’s minor, U21/U20, and junior championship games.
Undertaken without personal gain, Gerry’s monumental work was made possible with the support of the Westmeath County Board, ensuring the findings could be published. While not conceived as a commercial endeavour, a limited number of copies will be available from Thursday at TEG Cusack Park for just €20.
Gerry’s previous books include Fifty Years of the Hogan Cup (2003) and Fifty Five Years of The Croke Cup (2007) for which he was presented with a GAA President’s Award in 2007 by Nicky Brennan.