While Mullingar Shamrocks failed in their bid to retain the Flanagan Cup, the club enjoyed another successful year at underage level with the under 16s sweeping all in front of them. Team manager Des Maguire was understandably delighted with their performances. Mullingar Shamrocks may have relinquished their grip on the Flanagan Cup but it was by no means a barren year for the county town outfit. The minors were crowned club champions while the under 16 team won no fewer than three titles. Having won back-to-back under 14 championships in 1999 and 2000, there was a sense of inevitably about Shamrocks' under 16 triumphs last year. They began the year by winning the prestigious Newfare under 16 tournament which is run by the Athlone club. The club championship, which is contested by Garrycastle, Athlone, St. Loman's and Shamrocks, was captured in May. Then, in November, came the big one. Victory in the 'premier' championship final over neighbours St. Loman's after a replay. "It was a tremendous year for the under 16s," says team manager Des Maguire. "We came together in February for the Newsfare tournament and succeeded in winning it. That was a great way to start the year and we never really looked back after that. The only thing we didn't win was the league but we would have taken the championship any day instead." In the Newsfare tournament, Shamrocks emerged from a group that included Shannon Gaels, St. Brigid's, Kiltoom and Tullamore to meet Clan na nGael in the final. In a tremendously exciting decider at Pairc Chiarain, Shamrocks needed to call on all their battling qualities to edge out their Roscommon opponents. The club championship final followed soon afterwards with Garrycastle having been overcome in the semi-final. A talented St. Loman's team made the short trip to Springfield for what would prove to be a dress-rehearsal of the 'premier' final. The home side completely dominated the first half with big performances from Michael Curley, Peter Collins, Fiachra Spellman, Cian O'Leary and Dermot Earley helping them to establish a 3-7 to 0-4 lead at the interval. In the second half, however, St. Loman's came roaring back and were just four points adrift, 2-8 to 3-9, at the final whistle. In the 'premier' championship, Shamrocks survived a tough test from St. Patrick's before renewing acquaintances with Garrycastle in the semi-final. The Athlone side made a whirlwind start, scoring three goals inside the first 10 minutes. But the green and whites recovered well and had restored parity by half-time. It remained close in the second half but Shamrocks' greater scoring ability eventually gave them a 0-17 to 3-4 victory. The final took place on October 26 at Cusack Park and what a contest it proved to be. Loman's were quickly into their stride and a goal by Conor Clinton had propelled them into a 1-5 to 0-2 lead at the end of the opening quarter. But an opportunist goal by Darren Moore brought Shamrocks back into contention and only three points, 1-4 to 1-7, separated the sides at the break. On the restart, the green and whites upped the tempo and they took the lead for the first time when Cian O'Leary scored their second goal. Ken O'Dowd levelled for Loman's before the impressive Colin Connolly restored Shamrocks' slender advantage. Loman's refused to accept defeat, however, and a late point from Conor Clinton earned them a deserved 1-12 to 2-9 draw. The replay, played two weeks later, provided another quality contest with Shamrocks' goalscoring ability proving decisive. Loman's again made the better start and were 1-4 to 0-4 to the good before Cian O'Leary scored a wonderful individual goal to bring Shamrocks onto level terms at the interval. A Fiachra Spellman goal just after half-time gave Shamrocks the lead but Loman's hit back with a goal from Paul Martin to tie up matters once again. But Shamrocks had the stronger finish on this occasion as further goals from Peter Collins and Darragh Ryan swept them to a 4-8 to 2-9 victory. Shamrocks were denied a fourth title when they finished as runners-up to Garrycastle in the league. "They beat us in the first round and it cost us the league in the end," explains Maguire who was ably assisted in his managerial duties by Ned Moore (trainer) and Robbie Cornally. In addition to their success at club level, five Shamrocks players - Darragh Ryan, Sean Maguire, Michael Curley, Enda Monaghan and Cian O'Leary - were members of the Westmeath under 16 team which triumphed in the Gerry Reilly tournament for the third consecutive year. Sean Maguire, who is Des' son, was also chosen on the Leinster under 17 squad. Rather ominously for their rivals, Shamrocks will be able to call on 18 members of last year's under 16 panel again this year. "On paper, we should be good enough to retain the under 16 championship but it doesn't always work out like that," notes Des. Along with Gerry Nohilly, Maguire also managed the minor team that won the club championship. Following another victory over St. Loman's in the semi-final, they defeated Garrycastle by 1-9 to 1-7 in the final at Drumraney. Garrycastle led going into the closing stages but Shamrocks produced a late rally to take the spoils. The minors didn't enjoy the same success in the 'premier' championship with eventual champions Inny Gaels eliminating them at the quarter-final stage. At adult level, the year's highlight was provided by the junior 'B' team who retained the championship at Caulry's expense. The intermediates had a poor year but the biggest disappointment of all was the senior team's failure to retain the Flanagan Cup. With several of the previous year's side unavailable for a variety of reasons, Shamrocks were forced to dig deep into their reserves of talent for last year's campaign. They drew with The Downs in their opening game and followed that up with victories over Coralstown/Kinnegad and Moate All-Whites. They lost their next outing to Tyrrellspass but bounced back to beat Kilbeggan Shamrocks in their final game of the league section. In the quarter-final, they faced an up-and-coming Garrycastle at Castletown-Geoghegan. Shamrocks struggled from an early stage and found themselves 0-3 to 1-6 in arrears at the interval with county star Dessie Dolan more often than not punishing every foul committed inside the 45 metre line from frees. With their grip on the Flanagan Cup clearly slipping, Shamrocks introduced Eric Smith and Mickey Reilly at the start of the second half in an attempt to orchestrate a recovery. But the Garrycastle pressure was relentless and they eventually ran out comfortable 1-10 to 0-4 winners. "It was a very tame way to go out of the championship," says Des, who brought the curtain down on a 27-year refereeing career last summer. "We were very depleted last year with the likes of Aidan Lyons, Shane Colleary, Barry Loughrey, Brian Lambden and Mark Treanor all missing for different reasons. In the circumstances, I think we did well to reach the quarter-final but no club ever likes letting go of a senior championship," he adds. Encouragingly from a Shamrocks perspective, all of the above mentioned players are expected to return to the fold this year, as is Kieran Ryan who spent the past two years in New York. "We'll have a much stronger panel this year with all the lads coming back. The only positive thing to come out of last year was the amount of young players who were introduced to senior football. Competition for places will be fierce and hopefully, the Flanagan Cup will be back in Springfield before the year is out." The Mullingar Shamrocks team which captured the under 16 ' premier' championship title was: David Connolly; Mark McLoughlin, Enda Monaghan, Keith Moore; Michael Curley, Simon Cashman, Paddy O'Donnell; Sean Maguire, David Bell; Colin Connolly, Cian O'Leary, Fiachra Spellman; Darren Moore, Darragh Ryan, Peter Collins. Junior 'B' crown retained Mullingar Shamrocks retained the junior 'B' football championship title when they defeated Caulry by 1-24 to 1-15 in a replayed final at Kilbeggan last September. Caulry had staged a late rally in extra-time to earn a second chance in the first meeting of the teams at Shandonagh in June and they were also forced to come from behind to bring the replay into extra-time. But Mullingar Shamrocks' greater fitness ensured that they dominated the additional period and they went on to achieve victory with some style. Both finals were fantastic spectacles with free-flowing football and excellent scores in abundance. Aidan Daly's youthful charges enjoyed the better of the exchanges in the first half of the drawn game but Caulry improved in the second half to force extra-time. With substitutes Paul Christie and David Noonan both making big impressions, Shamrocks regained the lead in extra-time but the Mount Temple men refused to accept defeat and deservedly earned another bite at the cherry. The final score was Mullingar Shamrocks 1-15, Caulry 1-15. The replay was a virtual carbon-copy of the drawn game. Shamrocks set the early pace and had established a 1-9 to 1-4 lead at the interval. The Mullingar goal was scored by Anthony Clinton. Caulry staged a fine comeback in the second half to level the scoring at the end of normal time. But with Michael Walls, David Noonan, David Baker and John Brick to the fore, the county town side ran riot in extra-time to claim an impressive victory. The Mullingar Shamrocks team which retained the junior 'B' football championship title was: Robert Wallace; John Brick, Greg Gavin, David Smith; Oisin Clinton, David Baker, Paul Christie; Jarlath Nohilly, Anthony Clinton (1-4); Gary Corroon, Ciaran Garry (0-4), Michael Walls (0-12); Stephen Corroon, Willie Conlon, Davd Noonan (0-3). Subs: Jim Gallagher, Conor Flanagan, Tony Gavin (0-1), Ivan O'Connor, Aidan Gorman and Kevin Daly. Shamrocks accorded Address of Recognition Mullingar Shamrocks was accorded an Address of Recognition for its sporting, cultural and social contribution by the Mullingar Town Commission on November 15 last. The ceremony, which took place in Market House, saw one of the largest ever attendances at such a presentation in Mullingar. Speaking at the ceremony, Mullingar Shamrocks chairman Tom Hunt outlined the various roles the club plays, not just on the field but also in terms of social and cultural activities. The Address of Recognition, which was formally read by Town Clerk Caroline Byrne, stated: "We, the members of Mullingar Town Commission, are very pleased to pay this well deserved tribute to the Mullingar Shamrocks Gaelic football club, and in so doing, honour the many members of this great club, both past and present, that have through voluntary effort, contributed tremendously to the social, cultural and in particular the sporting life of the town of Mullingar and indeed the whole county of Westmeath." Founded in 1953 by members of the now defunct Pearses hurling club, Mullingar Shamrocks has since become the most successful club in Westmeath, winning over 60 county championship in all grades of football. A ladies football section was established in 1994 and the club has also participated regularly and successfully in the annual Scór competitions. Tweet

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