Familiar foes set to get the ball rolling

THE CHAMPIONSHIP comes to television screens around the country this Sunday. Granted, Westmeath and Longford in the Leinster football championship hardly represents the most high-profile or enticing opener for the masses but the GAA prefer a slow burn anyway, safe in the knowledge that come high summer they will always deliver peerless entertainment.

Longford's Brian Kavanagh made a national splash in 2006 when shining against Kerry in the qualifier match that also became significant for the arrival of Kieran Donaghy as a genuine footballing force.

Lost beneath an avalanche of praise for Donaghy, Seamus Moynihan said in the aftermath of the 4-11 to 1-11 contest in Killarney that Kavanagh, who landed 1-6, would "get into any team in the country".

The current team Kavanagh is attempting to break into is Kilmacud Crokes, after taking up a teaching job in St Olaf's primary school in Dundrum.

Club duty is on hold for now though. "It has taken a backseat in the past few weeks with the Longford thing. I suppose later on in the year I can play in the Dublin championship. There is top quality there."

Kavanagh's aims say a lot about the man. "A win over Westmeath and we've Offaly at home. We'd be hoping to get through that and then you have Dublin in Croke Park and you take it from there. You have to be ambitious at the beginning of the year or you are wasting your time training."

He talks about playing Dublin in Croke Park in his very first championship game for Longford. "We were blown off the field that day but I loved it. It was a really hot day and we were playing into the Hill in the first half. I really enjoyed it."

Of course, this is dangerous talk in the lead up to another duel with Westmeath.

After overcoming them last year in Leinster, Westmeath must have been overjoyed to see them fall into their lap on the back door route.

"We were sickened to meet them in the qualifiers after beating them a few weeks before that but 12 months on is a long time. The rivalry is fresh again. I can't wait to get at them on Sunday."

What a great line from a player; he is dying to have a go. It quickly became apparent that Kavanagh was cut from a different cloth to the clichéd, reveal-nothing brigade.

Judging from these meetings with Westmeath, Longford's consistency can be questioned.

Question. In the first game last year Westmeath were nine points up at half-time but you destroyed them in the second half. Then in the qualifiers . . .

"They were nine up and stayed nine up. I suppose last year in the first game we lacked a bit of belief playing against the wind in the first half.

"We were stuttering a bit. Dessie (Dolan) was flying down the other end of the field. And then the two quick goals just after half-time gave everyone a lift. Gave the crowd a lift and we took it from there.

"In the qualifiers we had just been beaten by Laois and that took the wind out of our sails. They had us in Cusack Park and revenge was always on their minds. They had had a huge lay-off, I think nine weeks. They were just mad for action and just blew us off the park."

Dolan is still nursing a hamstring problem so that's one positive for Longford. Kavanagh's scoring ability should be another come Sunday.