'Maroon and White' reflects on a mixed bag for the county in underage football. Westmeath's underage football teams experienced something of a mixed year with the relative success of the under 14 and under 15 sides atoning somewhat for a disappointing showing by the under 16 team. The under 14 and under 15 teams showed plenty of promise by acquitting themselves well in their respective competitions. But the year proved to be a major disappointment for the under 16 team, culminating in the resignation of the management after a poor response by players to the Leinster tournament. Having acquired a winning habit at under 16 level in recent seasons, hopes were high that last year's team could scale the same heights. But a series of disappointing performances meant that silverware eluded Westmeath for the first time in four years. As ever, the Fr Manning Cup and Gerry Reilly tournaments ran simultaneously. Westmeath were bidding for a fourth consecutive success in the latter, but an indifferent showing against Cavan in their first outing on July 1 suggested that they would struggle to hold onto their crown. A Gavin Hoey goal after just two minutes gave Westmeath a dream start, but they failed to build on it and by half-time, Cavan had edged into a 1-3 to 1-2 lead. The Breffnimen threatened to pull clear in the second half, but the accurate freetaking of David Glennon kept the maroon and whites in touch. A great point from substitute Conor Jordan with five minutes remaining ensured that the sides finished on 1-6 apiece. A week later, Westmeath succumbed to a crushing 1-5 to 3-11 defeat at the hands of eventual champions Meath. The Royals got off to a flier, notching 1-1 in the opening five minutes, but Westmeath then enjoyed their best spell of the game, scoring 1-3 without reply. Conor Jordan got them off the mark when he forced a David Glennon free to the net after eight minutes while Glennon (two) and Gavin Hoey followed up with points to give the visitors a 1-3 to 1-1 lead after 14 minutes. That was as good as it got for Westmeath, however, as Meath responded by reeling off five unanswered points between the 16th and 26th minutes. Glennon pulled back a point for Westmeath, but two further minors left Meath 1-8 to 1-4 in front at the interval. With wind advantage to come in the second half, Westmeath looked to be in a decent position, but two quick points from Meath on the resumption appeared to deflat them. David Glennon kept the maroons in touch when slotting over a free in the 14th minute, but when Meath swooped for their second goal against the run of play, the game was over as a contest. That defeat left Westmeath needing a victory over Dublin in their final group game to keep their interests alive. And, in fairness to the team, they showed a vast improvement to triumph over the Metropolitans by 1-15 to 2-11 and, in the process, force a play-off with Cavan. Westmeath opened in blistering fashion, chalking up eight points without reply in the first 10 minutes. Dublin then suddenly came to life and within nine minutes, had reduced Westmeath's lead to the minimum by notching an unanswered 1-4. Darren Moore edged the Lake County lads two points clear before the Dubs swooped for their second goal in the 29th minute. However, David Boyce responded with his third point to ensure parity at the interval, 0-10 to 2-4 The game seemed to be slipping from Westmeath's grasp when they trailed by 0-12 to 2-9 midway through the second half, but a brace of points from man of the match David Glennon and a fine effort by Conor Jordan had the sides level after 20 minutes. Dublin had edged back in front before, in the 26th minute, a long ball from David Duffy caused consternation in the Dublin defence and substitute Kenny Higgins was on hand to slot home the decisive goal. Dublin pulled back a late point, but Westmeath held on for a crucial victory. Before Westmeath faced Cavan in the Gerry Reilly play-off, the same two sides met in the opening round of the Fr Manning Cup at Mullingar with the home side coming from behind to claim a dramatic victory. Determined not to lose again, the Breffnimen finally put paid to Westmeath's hopes of retaining the Gerry Reilly Cup with a deserved 0-13 to 0-11 victory. Despite being decimated by injuries to key players such as Philip Gilsenan, Eddie O'Neill, Conor Jordan and Mark McLoughlin, Westmeath led by 0-4 to 0-3 at the end of the first quarter. But Cavan dominated the second quarter to take a 0-7 to 0-4 lead into the break. Cavan had surged into a 0-12 to 0-7 lead before two pointed frees from Glennon - who was introduced late in the game - and a great score from John Ahern reduced the deficit to two points. But the Ulster side defended stout-heartedly thereafter to qualify for the final. Things took a turn for the worst also in the Fr Manning Cup when Westmeath suffered consecutive defeats to Leitrim and Roscommon. They were eventually thrown a lifeline when they recorded a 1-9 to 1-5 victory over holders Longford on August 7. Westmeath always appeared the more likely winners, but they made hard work of their win, particularly in the second half. They had built up a 1-7 to 0-1 lead by half-time, but only scored twice in the second half as Longford roared back into contention and almost salvaged something from the game. Westmeath's interests in the Fr Manning Cup came to an end one week later, despite an impressive 2-9 to 0-7 victory over Sligo at Markievicz Park. Cavan's 2-8 to 0-6 triumph over Leitrim at Carrigallen on the same night meant that Westmeath's efforts were all in vain, with the Breffnimen qualifying for the final against Roscommon instead. Looking back on the five-match campaign, it was the defeat to Leitrim at St. Loman's that ultimately cost Westmeath. With 15 minutes to go, the maroons led by 10 points, but somehow managed to lose by a point. The season ended on a most unsatisfactory note when the management team of Pat Collins, Vinny Hoey and Vinny Maguire tendered their resignations after several players had made themselves unavailable for a Leinster tournament game against Dublin in October. Rather inevitably, a depleted Westmeath side succumbed to a 2-6 to 4-13 defeat. The undoubted highlight of the year on the underage scene was the achievement of the under 15 team in winning the Leinster blitz at St. Loman's in April. A 2-12 to 1-6 victory over Longford in the final completed a successful day for the home county. Westmeath played four games in all, winning three and losing one. They beat Longford by 2-6 to 2-3 in the opening game before accounting for Louth on a 2-10 to 0-5 scoreline. Westmeath suffered their only defeat to Offaly, 0-2 to 3-3, in their final preliminary round game, but their earlier wins assured them of a place in the final where they renewed rivalries with Longford. The home side, who were managed by Niall Lynch, Michael McHugh and Damien McLoughlin, welcomed back towering midfielder John Ahern for the final (he missed the Offaly game through injury) and his presence helped to inspire the team to a convincing win. There was little to separate the sides in the opening 10 minutes, but with Enda Ravenhill, Paul Leonard, Mark Fitzpatrick, Niall Lynch and Ahern all prominent, Westmeath got on top before half-time and maintained their dominance throughout the second half. At under 14 level, Westmeath fielded two teams in the Leinster tournament and both gave excellent accounts of themselves. The South Westmeath team enjoyed a magnificent campaign, beating Longford, Meath, Louth and drawing with Dublin. The North Westmeath selection also defeated Longford and Louth, but lost to Dublin and Meath. The clash with Meath was a memorable one, with the Royals emerging as 5-5 to 2-11 victors. Later in the year, the two teams came together to compete in the Tuft Cup, a tournament run by the Louth county board. Defeats to Meath and Louth ended Westmeath's hopes of winning the tournament, but they redeemed themselves with wins over Down and Laois. The under 14s were managed by Des Doolin, Michael McHugh and Liam Byrne. Tweet

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