A first minor championship in eight years, coupled with the official opening of their new clubhouse, proved the highlights of 2002 for Mullingar Shamrocks. Underage secretary Pat Collins shares his recollections on the year's events. Mullingar Shamrocks may have disappointed in the senior football championship, but there was still a great deal of satisfaction taken from the club's first minor championship triumph in eight years. Along with the official opening of their splendid new clubhouse last April - which was marked by a senior football challenge between Westmeath and Derry - the minor success provided the year's highlight for the Springfield-based club. While always a force to be reckoned with in underage competition, Shamrocks' capture of the under 18 crown was something of an unexpected bonus for club members. "We weren't expecting it," admits Shamrocks underage secretary Pat Collins. "At the start of the year, Inny Gaels and St. Loman's would have been considered the two best minor teams in the county. Our minor team hadn't been successful at under 16 level, so we weren't expecting much. But, after they got through the first round, they seemed to grow in confidence and finished up as champions," he adds. En route to the final, Shamrocks defeated amalgamation sides St. Patrick's and Clann Braonain in the quarter-final and semi-final respectively. Of the two teams, Clann Braonain provided the Mullingar side with by far their toughest test. Shamrocks had opened up an eight-point lead by the interval, but with the wind behind them in the second half, Clann staged a second half comeback which saw them narrow the gap to two points at full-time. Played as a curtain-raiser to the senior final at Cusack Park on September 29, the minor decider against Inny Gaels proved to be a disappointing spectacle, but Shamrocks weren't complaining after their 1-7 to 0-7 victory. North county amalgamation Inny Gaels, who were chasing their third title on the trot and had accounted for St. Loman's in the quarter-final, were warm favourites, but they found themselves chasing the game after Peter Collins (Pat's son) scored the only goal midway through the first half. Peter Tormey fired the holders into an early advantage, but Shamrocks responded with points from Paul Hickey, Cian O'Leary and Sean Maguire to lead by 0-3 to 0-1. Then, just as Inny Gaels looked like hauling themselves back into contention, Collins planted a low shot past goalkeeper Patrick Boyce to put the town side in the driving seat. A short time later, Colin Connolly was unlucky to be denied by the crossbar, but Shamrocks still took a 1-5 to 0-4 lead into the break. With Eoin O'Meara, Micheál Curley and Paul Christie in unyielding form at the back, Shamrocks remained firmly in control after the resumption. Inny Gaels did succeed in reducing the gap to two points near the end, but Fiachra Spellman's late fisted point sealed a deserved win for the green and whites. "The final wasn't a great game, but I always felt that we were in control of our own destiny," says Collins. "Inny Gaels piled on the pressure in the last quarter, but we were very solid at the back and didn't give anything silly away. It was great to win the minor championship after such a long gap - when we last won it in 1994, we had the likes of Brian Morley, Mark Treanor, Shane Colleary, Aidan Lyons and Barry Loughrey in the side." "With only a handful of last year's team no longer eligible for minor, I'm hopeful that we can retain the title this year. We won the under 16 title two years ago but, in saying that, minor is a peculiar grade and anything can happen." Collins, who was in charge of the county under 16 side last season, is fulsome in his praise of the minor management team of Ned Moore and Des Maguire. "Both men are highly respected by the young lads, in particular Ned who has a great way of motivating players. Because Ned wears his heart on his sleeve, he mightn't be the most popular person outside Shamrocks, but within the club, players worship the ground he walks on." The minor success atoned for the disappointment experienced at under 16 level where Shamrocks succumbed to eventual winners Clann Braonain in the championship quarter-final. This team, which had won all before it in the under 14 grade, did, however, have the consolation of reaping success in both the Newsfare tournament and in the club championship. The Newsfare tournament, which is organised by the Athlone club, is contested each spring by the top teams in Westmeath, Roscommon, Longford and Offaly and has been won by Shamrocks for the past two years. Shamrocks defeated Garrycastle, Ballymahon and Clann na nGael before overcoming Athlone by 0-10 to 1-4 in the final at Pairc Chiarain. The Mullingar side laid the foundations for their success in the first half when they established a six-point lead. The host club staged a determined fightback in the second half, but Shamrocks held on to take the spoils. Athlone were also Shamrocks' victims in the under 16 club championship final, losing by a point at Tang towards the end of the year. At under 14 level, Shamrocks didn't have much luck, losing the championship semi-final to eventual winners St. Michael's and the Feile Shield decider to St. Malachy's/Ballinagore. Under the guidance of Richie O'Donoghue, the Shamrocks senior team endured another disappointing year with the manner of their defeat to Castledaly in the championship semi-final coming as a bitter blow to supporters. The Springfield outfit had performed impressively in the group stages, claiming wins over St. Malachy's (2-13 to 2-6), Coralstown/Kinnegad (0-10 to 0-7), St. Mary's (1-17 to 1-8) and Ballynacargy (5-20 to 0-6). They were well beaten by Garrycastle (1-7 to 3-12), but still finished on the same total of points as the champions who slipped up against Coralstown/Kinnegad. In the quarter-final against Athlone, Shamrocks produced an impressive attacking display to win by 2-15 to 3-9. The Mullingar men led by 1-7 to 1-6 at the break and when Shane Colleary scored their second goal with six minutes of normal time remaining, they looked to have killed off the Shannonside challenge. But a late goal by Neil Dolan, and an even later penalty appeal which referee Pat Fox overlooked, meant that Mullingar supporters had to endure some nervous moments before the final whistle sounded. The wheels came completely off the Shamrocks wagon on September 8 when they lost to Castledaly by 0-10 to 0-5 in a dour semi-final. Despite missing Kieran Ryan and Brian Lambden through injury, the green and whites opened brightly with Eddie Casey kicking three points inside the first 10 minutes. But Castledaly recovered to lead by 0-6 to 0-4 at the break and stamped their authority on the game completely in the second half to run out comfortable winners. This year marks the 100th anniversary of Shamrocks' first senior championship success and, needless to say, they will be doing their utmost to celebrate it with an 11th title win. "After our display against Castledaly last year, we'll need to show a big improvement if we're to put ourselves in the reckoning for a championship this year. With Tom Ormsby in the twilight of his career, I think we are now lacking a leader on the pitch. If we're to do well this year, some of the others will have to take on more responsibility. "A lot of eyebrows were raised when John Mulligan was appointed manager for the coming year, but it could turn out to be a very shrewd appointment. He won a junior championship with Bunbrosna two years ago and there's no reason why he can't win a senior with us," Collins concludes. The Mullingar Shamrocks team which captured the minor 'premier' championship was: Darragh Ryan; Eoin O'Meara, Enda Monaghan, Eddie Moore; Micheál Curley, Paul Christie, David Bell; Sean Maguire (0-1), Paul Hickey (0-1); Fiachra Spellman (0-3), Aonghus Smyth, Cian O'Leary (0-1); David Miller, Colin Connolly (0-1), Peter Collins (1-0). Subs used: Niall Smyth and Darren Moore. Tweet

Most Read Stories