The Highlight of the Decade is ...

Everybody Else Is Doing It, Why Can't We as Dolores O'Riordan once sang; it's time to nominate the Mullingar Shamrocks' Highlight of the Decade. The choice is not easy in the decade in which the club was transformed into a modern multi-cultural GAA entity promoting a diverse range of activities that cater for members of all ages in a family friendly dynamic.

There is much to chose from: a first All-Ireland adult Scór title (2000); Karen, Gemma Leahy, Carole Finch and Emma Morris won LGF National League and All-Ireland medals (2011); a Junior football title (2013), the opening of the club's Fitness Centre and Lighted Walk Track (2014); the staging of the Club Forum, a defining moment in the rehabilitation of the club (2017); the growth of LGF and our adherence to the One Club model, the introduction of the schools' coaching programme, the unveiling of the SeamrÓigi concept and the re-establishment of our under-age programme on a sound footing. There were a few great Lá na gClubanna days too.

There were many non-football highlights also .. the six-day sold-out success of Grease in the MAC (2016) followed by Strictly Shamrocks (2018) and when we thought things couldn't get much better we reached new heights in September with The Sound of the Musicals, a song and dance extravaganza and the Dinner Dances in 2013 and 2019, and of course the wonderfully manic On the Ball night in the Greville Arms..

And then there was two senior football championship titles and given that the senior team is the club's shop window and the Flanagan Cup is the big prize available to the club's of Westmeath, the choice is either the 2012 or 2018 title victories. It's hard to argue against the 2012 final replay victory over Garrycastle as the decade's highlight. Once the knock-out stages were reached the players refused to accept defeat. Down by 0-10 to 0-4 and virtually out against Tyrrellspass in the quarter-final, the players inspired by Micheál Curley staged a magnificent last ten minutes recovery to win by 1-10 to 0-10. St Loman's in the semi-final led by five points early in the first-half before Shamrocks drew level only to then drift out of the game and allow the local boys establish another six-point lead. The game eventually ended in a 2-12 to 2-12 draw. In the replay, St. Loman's led by six points after seventeen minutes before Shamrocks took control to secure a county-final place. In the final, Leinster champions and All-Ireland finalists Garrycastle established a 3-7 to 1-4 lead early in the second-half and their four-in-a-row title quest seemed secure. Shamrocks however outthought, outfought and outscored Garrycastle for the last twenty-five minutes to earn a well-deserved draw (3-9 to 3-9). Half-way through the first half of the replay, Shamrocks conceded the customary five points lead to the opposition but the successful fight back began and three magnificent Seanie Daly points in the final minutes secured victory for Shamrocks (0-12 to 1-8).

However, as good as the 2012 victory was it was surpassed by the 2018 final victory against St Loman's in the first all-Mullingar final. Mullingar Shamrocks were serious contenders in the early 2010s but at the start of 2018 the senior team was in apparent freefall. It was even suggested that the club's next adult title would be an intermediate one. Relegated to Tier 2 of the championship, we began the year as total outsiders. The appointment of Ned Moore as senior team manager was crucial. Ned believed in himself when others weren't sure. He wasn't shy about telling people he could lead and craved a chance to prove it. And when he got the opportunity, he assembled a management team of Barry, Enda and Gerry that dispensed with the negative narrative. Like Liam Sheedy in Tipperary in 2019, he built his team around the long serving players and developed a game plan that suited the cause. The result was gradual improvement as the season progressed that culminated in the superb county final victory against St Loman's. The local Derby element made it a special victory but beating great champions is never easy. In 2018 St Loman's were as dominant as Dublin were at national level, their records were remarkably similar - St Loman's were chasing their fourth title in five years and in search of their fourth successive county title and were the hottest of favourites to continue the great winning streak.

The Mullingar Shamrocks victory was a great team victory made possible by two brilliant goals. The first scored by Paddy Fagan who brilliantly volleyed to the net after Dónal O'Donoghue raced through the St Loman's defence. And watch for Donal's dummy pass that created that little bit of extra space. The second goal was a wonderful creation. Daragh Daly's knock-down interception began a series of passes that released Daragh to provide the final pass to Denis Corroon and the coolest man in Cusack Park sold the dummies, picked his spot and left-footed the ball past Stephen Gallagher for the crucial goal. The swiftness of the inter-passing and , Daragh continuing his run after the interception made it all possible; a fraction of hesitation, a moment of selfishness by those involved and the chance was gone. And so the nomination for the Highlight of the Decade is the County Final Victory of 2018.

Feel free to make your own suggestions.