We won tonight’s challenge match with Westmeath – and, with it, the world famous Tim Kelly Engineering Floodlit Cup – by 2-9 to 0-9, according to Mayofans.com. The same source has details of the team and the scorers from tonight’s encounter with the Lake County, which were as follows:

D Clarke; C Moran, BJ Padden, L O’Malley; C Barrett, A Higgins, K Higgins 0-1; S O’Shea, P Gardiner 0-2; J Gill 0-1, A O’Malley 0-3, M Mullins 1-0; C Mortimer, B Moran 1-0, A Moran 0-1. Subs: C Boyle for Gardiner, C Conroy for A Moran, B Benson for B Moran, A Campbell for A O’Malley, A Kilcoyne 0-1 for Gill, T Parsons for O’Shea.

Mort scoreless? Austie must have been taking the frees, then. Another goal, I see, for Mickey Mullins and one too for the returning Barry Moran. And good to see Tom Parsons making an appearance too. On the debit side, BJ yet again at full-back (I think we now have to accept, after four straight starts, that he’s going to be first choice no.3 heading into the NFL) and Liam O’Malley settling back in at left corner back where he got repeatedly shredded last year. Oh well, at least Derry got walloped by Down in tonight’s McKenna Cup final (that made The Brother’s evening, seeing as he was tipping the Mournemen earlier in the week as dark horses in Ulster this year) and, in the process, didn’t look all that hot.

No rest for our lads either, apparently, as there’s another challenge lined up for 11am tomorrow down the road at The Neale’s pitch in Cong against DIT. So says Mad West. 11am, heh? I wonder who they’re playing in the afternoon? And surely to jaysus someone else will get a run-out out at full-back?