It’s a big week for both counties this weekend so what better time to look back at this clash, where they scored a combined 7-38.
The Christy Ring Cup may operate a little in the shadows but it seems to be fulfilling its intention. A look back at the winners in the early years of the tournament now reveal teams that are improving all the time, buoyed by a success or two at this second tier.
Westmeath, with three wins, and Carlow, with two, lead the Christy Ring roll of honour and this weekend both will play massive qualifier games, with the former playing Waterford, the latter Wexford. Both are underdogs but progress is being made, and you only have to look at the Carlow U21s, also in action this week, to see that the tide is definitely rising in these counties.
With all that in mind, we thought it was a perfect time to revisit the 2008 Christy Ring final between the two counties. Played in O’Connor Park, the two teams served up a thriller that required extra time to separate them. Carlow, inspired by Craig Doyle’s goals led early before Brendan Murtagh for Westmeath tied it up late on.
Carlow pulled away in extra time to take the title but the goals in this clip show that the skills have been there for a while. Perhaps they will get a bigger platform soon.
