St Vincent's roll should have momentum

You have to go back 34 years to locate the last time a Westmeath team got to a Leinster club final. By coincidence, The Downs also came up against St Vincent's and ended up getting an unmerciful trimming.

Once more the Dublin club are hot favourites going into tomorrow's AIB Leinster football final but the scale of the odds (4 to 9 in places) reflect the weight of money rather than evidence. It's also a reflection of Vincent's having given their best display of the semi-final when they overwhelmed a fancied Portlaoise.

Yet on the basis of their season overall the Dublin champions' strength has been in coming through tight matches in which they've had to work hard rather than the idyllic circumstances of walking an unanswered 1-8 past a fast-disintegrating Portlaoise.

Well-known intercounty players are frequently the short-cut icons in assessing club sides but even deeper analysis of Tyrrellspass keeps coming back to the contributions of Martin Flanagan and Denis Glennon. That dependency won't change tomorrow, particularly with the other Glennon, David, looking likely to miss out because of a hamstring injury.

The problem for the two players in question is they don't have the powers of bi-location. This means that Flanagan, whose technical ability makes him valuable close to goal, has to spend periods helping out at centrefield, and Glennon, the team's chief executioner, drops back to use his pace and ball carrying to relieve the defence.

Vincent's don't have to spread their talent as thinly. Although Tomás Quinn has been Vincent's scorer in chief, the rest of the attack has been contributing well and there have been signs that Diarmuid Connolly's form has recovered from the slump of his early provincial rounds.

With Brian Maloney's direct play and the aerial threat of Pat Gilroy, whether starting or coming in, against a Tyrrellspass full back line not 100 per cent comfortable under high ball, the Dublin team have good attacking options.

They also are capable of grafting farther back when Tiernan Diamond drops out to assist the backs, which will reduce the space in which Flanagan and Glennon can operate. Tyrrellspass will take some comfort from the manner in which Seneschalstown bottled up Vincent's in the drawn quarter-final and nearly beat them.

The Westmeath champions also have a good CV themselves at this stage. Twelve months ago they came within a point of eventual champions Moorefield and this time around defeated them.

They also dug out a narrow win in Carlow against Éire Óg, who, if not the force they were, are still hard to beat.

Home advantage gives Tyrrellspass a chance of springing a surprise but the advantage lies with Vincent's, who have a better spread of quality throughout the field and the experience of surviving tight situations as well as the look of a team whose form is improving with each match.

Tyrrellspass (Westmeath) v St Vincent's (Dublin)

Tomorrow, Mullingar

Live on TG4, Throw-in - 2pm