Muireann Duffy
Westmeath have become the first ever winners of the Tailteann Cup after they beat Cavan 2-14 to 1-13 in Croke Park.
The counties traded points in the opening minutes, claiming five points each inside the first 20 minutes.
Coming into the latter stages of the first half, Westmeath put a bit of breathing room between themselves and Cavan, slotting over two successive points in as many minutes.
A goal from Lorcan Dolan in the 27th minute looked to change the complexion of the game, however, a point from Cavan's Paddy Lynch in added time cut their half-time deficit back to just two points.
Kieran Martin's tantalising run ends in a goal for @westmeath_gaa. pic.twitter.com/Q1U7iuUoCH
— The GAA (@officialgaa) July 9, 2022
Getting back to a point down soon after the resumption of play, Cavan showed no signs of rolling over. Their hard work was rewarded in the 52nd minute when Pádraig Faulker found the netting, giving his county a one-point lead.
Mickey Graham's men extended their lead to three points by the 56th minute, however, a red card for Thomas Galligan swung momentum back to Westmeath.
Back level with less than five minutes of ordinary time remaining, Kieran Martin made an immense run on goal, coming away with the goods to make it 2-13 to 1-13.
Still not beaten, Cavan made their best attempt to get in for a second goal, but a super save from Westmeath captain Kevin Maguire denied Conor Madden the chance to bring his county back from the brink.
One last point, fisted over the bar by Ronan Wallace, was all that remained, ending the game with a four-point win for Westmeath with Ronan O'Toole named man of the match.
