Paul Bealin: Westmeath will find comfort in crowded defence

Sometimes it’s hard not to feel the lady doth protest too much. A year on from parking the bus at Croke Park in last year’s Leinster final — and doing a pretty good job of it for 40 minutes or so — Westmeath are talking about going for goals in tomorrow’s rematch. And lots of them.

“We reckon we’ve no chance of beating them unless we get three goals and we don’t concede a goal,” said Westmeath manager Tom Cribbin this week. “That’s the way we’ll be planning the game.”

Cribbin went on to talk at length about their greater desire to attack tomorrow having scored just six points in last year’s final and only four from play. “This year, they want to have a cut at it.”