Westport Utd the last men standing

Westport United 5

Kitterick 11, Nugent 48, 57, 82,
Dylan O’Malley 85

Galty Celtic (Dublin) 0

An Adam Nugent hat-trick, after Kevin Kitterick’s early goal, and a Dylan O’Malley strike, five minutes before the end, ensured Westport United go into the draw for the Fifth Round of the FAI Junior Cup - the only Mayo side remaining in the competition.

“This is what we wanted,” Westport manager, Kevin McNamara, told The Mayo News after the final whistle. “We want to be playing in January. We want to keep the Westport tradition alive.”

The performance was vintage Westport and truly keeps the tradition alive. The passing; the tackling; the movement; the incredible pace of the youngsters; the solidity of the more experienced players. This had it all.

Belief is everything in football and the early goal settled the locals’ nerves, and rattled the visitors. Kitterick finished well on eleven minutes, from Aaron Cannon’s pass; the defender unlucky to be injured in the process. Cannon’s replacement, Nugent then proceeded to score three – the first coming three minutes after the restart, to mortally wound the spirited Dublin side. Nugent had three goes at it, before the ball finally crossed the line. His second, on fifty-seven minutes, after Dylan O’Malley’s excellent chasing, put it beyond doubt. Nugent claimed the match-ball with eight remaining, and Dylan O’Malley made it five, near the end, to round off a great performance.

Roscommon man, Paul Mee, gave a man-of-the-match performance, on a day that any of the Westport players could have claimed it. Westport move on; Galty go home.

Full report and pictures in The Mayo News Sport, out on Tuesday morning.