For the first time in many years, Mullingar Shamrocks finished the season without a major trophy. But 2004 still had its positives according to senior team selector Tom Hunt. It's not often that Mullingar Shamrocks finish a season empty-handed, but that's exactly what happened in 2004. A semi-final replay defeat to Castledaly ended Shamrocks' hopes of senior championship success, while there was further disappointment when the intermediate team were relegated following a play-off defeat to Maryland. At underage level, Shamrocks contested the minor and under 14 club '1' championship finals but were forced to give second best to St. Malachy's/Ballinagore and St. Loman's respectively. "I can't remember the last time we failed to win a championship in at least one of the grades," says senior team selector and former club chairman Tom Hunt. "It's obviously something we would be concerned about because we have had such a proud winning tradition over the past 20 years or so. But our neighbours St. Loman's didn't have a particularly good year either and I think that's a reflection on how much the country clubs have improved. It's not because Loman's or ourselves have let our standards slip," he adds. Even allowing for the senior team's low age profile, Shamrocks had high hopes of bringing the Flanagan Cup back to Springfield for the first time since 2000. But for the second time in three years, they succumbed to Castledaly at the penultimate round stage. "I thought we were a bit unlucky not to reach the county final," claims Hunt, who was part of a new management team along with Mayo native and former Roscommon senior team statistician Sean Finnegan. "Outside of Shamrocks, nobody expected much from us but within the club we expected to get into the county final. The expectations are always high, no matter what team we put on the field. "We probably missed our chance the first day against Castledaly when they scored a goal that should never have been allowed. The ball was about a foot over the sideline before it was sent in for their first goal. But whatever about the drawn game, we could have no excuses about the replay. They were more up for it and deserved to win." Shamrocks opened their championship campaign with a hard-earned 0-10 to 1-4 victory over Moate All-Whites at Rochfortbridge. The Springfield side raced into a 0-4 to 0-0 lead, only to be reeled in by an Alan Claffey goal for Moate just before half-time. Anthony Malone brought Moate level shortly after the restart but Shamrocks responded with points from Brian Morley, Sean Maguire and Darren Moore to emerge victorious. Following the long break caused by the county side's extended championship run, Shamrocks chalked up their second win at the expense of Tyrrellspass. Again, the football wasn't pretty as they grinded out a 0-7 to 0-4 win. On a difficult evening for football, Tyrrellspass led by 0-2 to 0-1 at the interval and were still in front with six minutes remaining. But a late Shamrocks rally, which yielded unanswered points from Anthony Clinton, Barry Loughrey and Darren Moore (two), saw the town side prevail. Shamrocks maintained their 100 per cent record with an impressive 3-9 to 0-7 victory over St. Malachy's on August 31. An 11th minute goal from Dermot Curley helped Sean Finnegan's charges to a 1-3 to 0-4 interval lead and they went on to seal an easy win with two goals from Cian O'Leary midway through the second half. Against Tubberclair in their fourth outing, Shamrocks were somewhat fortunate to preserve their unbeaten record when a late point from Shane Colleary earned them a 0-11 to 1-8 draw and a place in the knock-out stages. Tubberclair dominated the first half to lead by 0-7 to 0-3 at the break but Shamrocks showed a big improvement after the restart and had forged into a 0-10 to 0-8 lead with 10 minutes to go. However, a fisted goal from Jeffrey Farrell looked like giving Tubberclair victory until Colleary came to the green and whites' rescue. Going into their final group match against Garrycastle, Shamrocks were still in contention for a semi-final spot but a 0-5 to 0-10 defeat meant that they had to be content with a quarter-final place instead. There was little to separate the sides in the first half but with Dessie Dolan orchestrating matters, Garrycastle found an extra gear following the resumption to run out comfortable winners. After a keenly-contested opening 20 minutes of their quarter-final against Athlone, Shamrocks took a firm grip on proceedings when a brace of goals from Cian O'Leary helped them to a 2-7 to 0-3 lead at half-time. By the 42nd minute, Shamrocks had extended their lead to 12 points and looked home and hosed. But despite the huge deficit, Athlone battled back with David Prendergast's goal handing them a lifeline. Points from Prendergast, Fallon, Mitchell and Dolan saw Athlone continue to eat into the Mullingar lead, but they eventually ran out of time as the green and whites held on for a 2-9 to 1-9 victory. Shamrocks' semi-final meeting with Castledaly proved to be the game of the championship with free-flowing football and some great scores being the order of the day. Cian O'Leary's sixth goal of the campaign helped Shamrocks to a 1-5 to 0-7 lead at the break but the game took a sudden turn after the restart when goals from Michael Duffy and Paul Kelly propelled Castledaly into a four-point lead with 10 minutes remaining. However, Shamrocks dug deep and came back to snatch a 1-12 to 2-9 courtesy of unanswered points from Darren Moore (two) and O'Leary and a last gasp equalizing free from Shane Colleary. The replay was another close contest with Castledaly emerging as 0-13 to 1-8 winners. The game was a pale shadow of the drawn encounter with Castledaly's superior physical strength giving them a vital edge. The highlight was a wonderful goal by Darren Moore in the 24th minute, but unfortunately for Shamrocks, he received poor support from those around him. Castledaly led by two points at the break and with JP Casey in fine scoring form, continued to hold the upperhand in the second half. Despite that defeat, Hunt was pleased with the team's performances and took much encouragement from the promise shown by the younger members of the side. "The big positive I would take from the year was the form of our younger players. The likes of Cian O'Leary, Sean Maguire and Darren Moore belied their years, while David Miller and Eoin O'Meara were others who came of age. Alan Lambden also played a leading role after missing all of the previous year," he says. "I thought Darren Moore had an exceptional year and I would go as far as saying he's the nearest thing we've had to Bernard Flynn since he retired. He's a special player and anyone who saw his goal against Castledaly in the semi-final replay will vouch for that." Manager Sean Finnegan is another to come in for special praise from Waterford native Hunt. "Our season would have collapsed if it wasn't for Sean. The structure of the championship was a disgrace and I'm sure every other club in the county would agree with me on that. But during the three-month break, Sean kept the players interested by varying the training. He was a breath of fresh air to the club and we are delighted to have him for another year." Other highlights for Hunt was the reunion night for the 1964 senior championship winning side in March and the involvement of Donal O'Donoghue, Brian Morley and Shane Colleary in Westmeath's historic Leinster championship success. The intermediate team's relegation was an obvious low point, but Hunt is confident that they will make amends in the coming year. "I'd be very disappointed if we didn't win the junior championship this year. We had 45 players eligible to play intermediate last year and they'll be all eligible for the junior grade next year. We've always been proud of the fact that we were able to field teams in the three grades and hopefully we'll get back to that situation next year." As for the senior championship, the schoolteacher at Mullingar Community College isn't ruling out Shamrocks' chances either. "I wouldn't fear any team in the senior championship with perhaps the exception of Garrycastle who seem to be playing within themselves. If we hadn't beaten them in 2003, they would be going for five in-a-row this year and that would be some achievement. "By and large, we have a young team but we'll still be expecting big things this year. 2005 is the tenth anniversary of our four in-a-row success and hopefully that will act as an incentive to the players," he concludes. The Mullingar Shamrocks team which drew with Castledaly in the SFC semi-final was: Dermot Ryan; Paddy Rouse, Eoin O'Meara, David Walls; Eric Smith, Donal O'Donoghue, Michael Burke; Anthony Clinton, Shane Colleary; Alan Lambden, Dermot Curley, Cian O'Leary; Darren Moore, Brian Morley, Sean Maguire. Subs used: Michael Curley and David Noonan. Shamrocks capture under 21 title After a barren 2004, Mullingar Shamrocks have begun 2005 in fine style by capturing the under 21 football crown in the delayed final at The Downs on Sunday, March 20. Opponents Coralstown/Kinnegad had simply no answer to the scoring power and all-round strength of the Springfield-based club who ran out decisive winners on a 3-16 to 1-10 scoreline Shamrocks laid the foundations for their success in the opening half when, favoured by the wind, they built up a 1-11 to 0-4 interval lead. The goal was scored in injury-time by Darren Moore and effectively ended the game as a contest. On the restart, points from Moore and Sean Maguire extended Shamrocks' lead before three unanswered points from Danny Mooney gave Coralstown/Kinnegad hope. But a goal from David Noonan put Shamrocks back in the driving seat and, although Jamie Wilson replied with a similar score for the red and whites, Maguire put the issue beyond doubt with a third Shamrocks goal in the closing stages. The victorious Mullingar Shamrocks team was: Robert Wallace; Conor Flanagan, Eoin O'Meara, Paul Christie; Gary Moore, Donal O'Donoghue, Michael Curley; Jarleth Nohilly, Aonghus Smyth; Fiachra Spellman, Anthony Clinton, David Miller; Sean Maguire, David Noonan, Darren Moore. Subs used: Conor Twomey and Paul Hickey. Tweet

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