Brian Flanagan: 'Playing Leinster Championship quarter-finals and semi-finals in these regional venues makes absolute sense'

RIGHT DECISION: Kildare manager Brian Flanagan praised the Leinster Council’s decision to give teams home advantage in the Leinster Championship quarter-finals and to take the semi-finals out of Croke Park. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile

Leinster SFC quater-final: Kildare 2-17 (2-2-13) Westmeath 0-21 (0-2-17)

Kildare manager Brian Flanagan praised the Leinster Council’s decision to give teams home advantage in the Leinster Championship quarter-finals and to take the semi-finals out of Croke Park after his team qualified for the last four by beating Westmeath in front of a packed Cedral St Conelths Park on Saturday evening.

The game was played just two weeks shy of 30 years to the day since Kildare’s last Leinster Championship game at the Newbridge venue and Flanagan was in no doubt that it added to the occasion.

“There’s no two ways about it, that was a savage atmosphere there this evening,” said Flanagan, who was managing in the Championship for the first time.

“Any of these regional venues you go to, Tullamore, Páirc Tailteann, Portlaoise and play Leinster Championship football in them, they are going to be close to packed. You saw that here tonight, you saw the way the players feed off it, you hear the noise when there’s a score kicked. It’s an unbelievable feeling, and it’s one you don’t get in a half empty Croke Park. As much as Croke Park is where you ultimately want to get to, you want to get there for the big games and when there’s maybe a title on the line.

“We’ve a lot of work to do before we get to that point but right now, playing Leinster Championship quarter-finals and semi-finals in these regional venues makes absolute sense,” said Flanagan.

Under a manager still in his first season and on a night that six players tasted Championship action for the first time, Kildare are still a long way from the glory days they enjoyed under Mick O’Dwyer in 1998 and 2000. However, on a night when a presentation was made to his son Karl before throw in after the great man’s recent passing, Kildare showed plenty of the grit and determination that characterised those teams.

Westmeath were dogged opponents, and they will still be wondering how the tie might have played out had Ray Connellan, the game’s outstanding player in the first half, not gone off injured early in the second half but eventually Kildare’s young guns wore them down.

That was thanks in the main to two well timed goals. Westmeath had just rattled off five points in a row to lead 0-10 to 0-7 before a route one ball by Ben McCormack in the 29th minute picked out Alex Beirne and he fired home for Kildare’s first.

But it was Westmeath who led at half time, 0-12 to 1-8, with Luke Loughlin causing endless problems. He kicked a two pointer not long after Connellan’s departure to push Westmeath three clear and as the half wore it appeared they were keeping Kildare at arm’s length. That was until McCormack’s 50th minute shot dropped short and David Hyland, on his 48th Championship appearance, beat Conor McCormack to the ball to fist home his first Championship goal. That gave Kildare a lead that they never relinquished until the final hooter.

“David was brave enough to put himself in the position and compete for it and it came at an unbelievably important time in the game, no more than the first one that we got when we were three behind. To get those goals when we got them was unbelievably well timed,” said Flanagan.

Scorers for Kildare: Alex Beirne (1-5, 3fs), D Hyland (1-2, 1tp); B McCormack, B McLoughin (1tp); R Sinkey (0-2 apiece); D Kirwan, C Bolton, N Kelly, T Gill (0-1 apiece).

Scorers for Westmeath: L Loughin (0-11, 1tp, 1tpf, 2f); D McCartan (0-3); R Forde (0-2); B Cooney, R Connellan, K O'Sullivan, J Gonoud, S McCarten (0-1 apiece)

KILDARE: C Burke; H O’Neill, M Dempsey, B Byrne; K Flynn, D Hyland, J McGrath; K Feely, C Bolton; C Dalton, A Beirne, B McCormack; R Sinkey, D Kirwan, B McLoughlin. 

Subs: R Burke for O’Neill (14), T Gill for Flynn (32), N Kelly for McLoughlin (51), C Hagney for Feely (temp 61-62), M O’Grady for Dempsey (68).

WESTMEATH: C McCormack; J Gonoud, D Giles, C Dillon; N Harte, R Wallace, S McCartan; R Connellan, F O’Hara; K O’Sullivan, D McCartan, M Whittaker; R Forde, L Loughlin, B Cooney. 

Subs: B Guerin for Whittaker (temp 27-32), Guerin for Connellan (38), J Lynam for D McCartan (51), E McCabe for O’Sullivan (58), B Kelly for Cooney (58), K Martin for Forde (64).

Referee: David Gough (Meath).