Mark McHugh challenges his Westmeath players to make history after Meath win

McHugh will hope that star forward Luke Loughlin is fit to feature in a fortnight’s time. 

Westmeath manager Mark McHugh. Pic: Ben McShane/Sportsfile

Westmeath manager Mark McHugh has challenged his team to make their shock defeat of Meath count fully by going on to claim the Leinster Championship title.

His side took down their neighbours and rivals with five points to spare in Tullamore on Sunday afternoon and now face into a semi-final against Kildare in two weeks’ time after their own five-point win over Laois.

This is the Donegal man’s second year involved. He was part of Dermot McCabe’s management team last term. Now the main man, he was asked if he could understand what this victory means to his adopted county.

“I think I can after being out on that field afterwards. Like, there's grown men coming up and crying in your face and saying how proud they are. I think it's the second time that they’ve beaten Meath in the championship.

“And I'm not saying [there was] anything wrong with that game back then [in 2015] but they didn't go on to win Leinster. You know, we'd like to go on to win Leinster. That's our goal at the start of the year. We take it a game at a time … 

“Everybody's saying Leinster's wide open. Meath were, I think, 82 per cent in the polls during the week, that they were going to win. They’re out now, so does that mean we're 82pc in the polls? Is that the way it works? No.” 

It’s 22 years since Westmeath won their one and only Leinster senior championship under the late Paidi O Se but their performance, collectively and individually, against Meath suggests that they should be looking to back that up in the weeks to come.

McHugh certainly believes that they can.

“I don’t think I would have come down if I didn’t. I'm travelling up three and four hours, three or four times a week, and that's because I believe in that dressing-room. And I believe in the squad, I believed that we'll beat [Meath] today. So if we can beat Meath, why can't we not win Leinster?

“And I've said that from day one to the lads. They need to start writing their own history, these boys, and not be looking back on quarter-final wins or semi-final wins. We had one unbelievable year in Westmeath history, and we want to get back there and give people more days like this. And fully believe that we can do anything as a squad.” 

Westmeath will be without Conor McCormack for the foreseeable. 

A surprise inclusion between the sticks here, he has taken off after nine minutes having broken an ankle in the act of stopping a shot from the inrushing Cian McBride.

McHugh will also hope that star forward Luke Loughlin is fit to feature in a fortnight’s time. 

The Downs player brought a hamstring injury into this game and suggested he might have exacerbated it in scoring six points from play before retiring in the 51st minute.