Westmeath underdogs Castletown Geoghegan continue to dream big

After waiting 34 years for a win in the Leinster club hurling championship, Castletown-Geoghegan are bidding for a second upset in a week.

The Westmeath champions were the GAA story of the weekend when they ripped up the script with an unflattering 11-point victory over Thomastown in Mullingar.

They return to Cusack Park today, once again entering as strong underdogs against a Kilcormac-Killoughey still on course for a second provincial title in three years.

Castletown's chances, according to the bookmakers at least, are better this week of causing another shock, yet the Offaly champions are still odds-on to progress. Of the nine sides left in the hunt for All-Ireland glory, only rank outsiders Portaferry are deemed more of an outside shot of going all the way.

Alan Mangan, a club stalwart and perhaps best known for his exploits in helping Westmeath to a historic Leinster football title in 2004 under Páidí Ó Sé, is the man overseeing the memorable journey.

The 45-year-old is still going strong for St Malachy’s, the football club in the parish, having moved from one end of the pitch to the other to take up residence between the sticks.

Football has always been his first love, though the lure of the small ball has always been difficult to resist.

Having made his hurling championship debut for the club at the age of 16, Mangan finally bowed out in 2018 with three county medals to his name. He represented the Westmeath hurlers before switching attention to the footballers. It's now 20 years since he kicked four points in the Leinster final replay victory over Laois in a more democratic era in the Leinster championship.

That performance may have been fuelled by the tough love shown by Ó Sé in the build-up, berating the nippy