Wicklow shock Westmeath to move into last eight of Leinster SFC
April 07, 2024
Westmeath's Matthew Whittaker dejected as Matt Nolan and Jaques McCall of Wicklow celebrate ©INPHO/Bryan Keane
Wicklow sprung an early championship upset after defeating Westmeath by 2-9 to 1-11 at O’Moore Park in the opening round of the Leinster SFC.
Oisin McConville’s men stunned the recently crowned Division 3 champions with a sizzling start in Portlaoise that saw them 0-4 to 0-1 up before Dean Healy hit the net on 25 minutes.
From there, Wicklow moved towards a 1-5 to 0-1 half-time lead and, while the Lake men dominated large portions of the third quarter, another Wicklow goal from long range pushed the margin out to eight come the 52nd minute.
Jonathan Lynam, who netted twice in the Division 3 final against Down, would pull back a goal for Dessie Dolan’s men almost immediately, but they couldn’t close the gap as Chris O’Brien’s point with eight minutes left ended up being the difference for Wicklow as they booked a provincial quarter-final date with Kildare.
TweetAnother shock in the football championship as Wicklow beat Division 3 champions Westmeath 2-9 to 1-11. pic.twitter.com/8KXBslK2A8
— Whats The Scór (@WhatstheScor) April 7, 2024
