Castletown claim famous win over Kilkenny champions
Castletown Geoghegan 1-25 Thomastown 1-14
Westmeath hurling champions Castletown Geoghegan have secured a sensational victory over Kilkenny counterparts Thomastown in their Leinster Senior Club Hurling Championship quarter-final at TEG Cusack Park today (Sunday).
Not only did Castletown confound pre-match expectations by winning, they did so in comprehensive fashion by a margin of 11 points.
A late goal by attacking ace and top scorer Niall O'Brien sealed Castletown's victory, but Thomastown were already resigned to defeat at that stage.
Thomastown led by one point at half-time (1-10 to 0-12), with Luke Connellan scoring their goal early on. But a red card for Jonjo Farrell early in the second period proved a major blow. Castletown took full advantage with a wonderful display of hurling and they were rewarded with a famous win.
Although Thomastown were surprise winners of this year's Kilkenny title - claiming an emphatic county final win over 2203 winners O’Loughlin Gaels - any team that comes out of the Marble County is always worthy of considerable respect.
O’Loughlin Gaels were All-Ireland senior finalists last January, when they lost out to St Thomas' of Galway, while Thomastown won the All-Ireland intermediate crown. The fact that Thomastown were able to build on their intermediate success by going on to win the senior crown made the hurling fraternity across the country sit up and take notice.
But the boot was on the other foot today as Castletown pulled off a major upset against the favourites in a landmark day for the club and for Westmeath hurling as a whole.
Managed by former Westmeath football star Alan Mangan, Castletown will now meet either Offaly champions Kilcormac/Killoughey or St Mullin's of Carlow in their Leinster semi-final.
If K/K survive today's hurdle in Carlow, the highly rated Offaly side will be seen by most observers as strong Leinster title favourites. Based on today's win, however, Castletown will now harbour Leinster final ambitions of their own.