Club stalwart Jim Dalton admits that they achieved their goal last year of staying up at intermediate level, but pointed out that this year Milltown would be looking to make the knockout stages of that championship. "The lads held a player's meeting in January and it was decided that reaching the knockout stages of the championship and promotion to Division Two of the league would be the target for the year," said Jim. "We were happy enough with our displays last year but maybe should have done a bit better in some matches. The intermediate championship is very even now and there are a number of teams who can win it." Winning the junior championship and Cup in 2003 was a major boost for the small rural club whose side consist of a mixture of youth and experience. They brought their new confidence into last year's campaign and proved that there were a match for any side after meeting St Mary's Rochfortbridge in their opening match. The draw for the championship was not kind to Milltown as they were paired with three sides that were potential champions - St Mary's, Bunbrosna and Rosemount, while Ballinagore made up the last team in the group. Indeed the strength of the group was evident at the end of the year when St Mary's and Bunbrosna contesting the final with the Rochfortbridge side coming out on top. Milltown were expected to be hammered in their opening match by a side who had just been relegated from the senior ranks a few months earlier. However the men from Rathconrath rose to the occasion and pushed their more elite opponents all the way before eventually losing by two points, 2-9 to 1-10. The other teams in the group had to sit up and take notice after Milltown's performance and anyone who thought their performance was a fluke were proved wrong when they met Bunbrosna in their next match. The Bun are an up and coming side and many feel that the senior ranks beckon in the near future. This is probably the case but Milltown are a side that are not too far behind them in the skill and determination stakes. Their clash proved that as once again Milltown rose to the occasion but lacked the same killer instinct as they did against St Mary's and it proved vital as another two point defeat was recorded on a scoreline of 1-9 to 1-7. Despite all their efforts the new team in the intermediate ranks had no points to show for their performances and with only two games remaining in the group, they needed a win to avoid being dragged into a relegation battle. Near neighbours Ballinagore were the next opponents and this was a real chance for Milltown to record their first points of the 2004 championship as Ballinagore have been struggling to stay in the intermediate ranks for a few years now. Jim admits that if Milltown had lady luck on their side in their opening two matches then their championship run could have lasted longer than it did, although he admits that it was a great learning experience for the younger players in the side Jim said: "Even though we knew it would be tough against St Mary's, we were bitterly disappointed not to get something from the match and it was the same story against Bunbrosna. It just proves how even the intermediate championship is as these two teams went on to contest the final. "Some of the younger lads who came into the squad the previous year had won a Junior championship and Junior Cup in their first year and it was possible that they were a little over confident but this year they should be a bit wiser. "The standard of football in Westmeath has certainly improved in the last few years and the winning of our first Leinster title has played a huge part in that. The intermediate and junior championships have got more recognition lately which is good for the game and more players are getting noticed," added Jim. The match against Ballinagore saw Milltown play their best football to date as everything seemed to go right for them on the day in contrast to their opening two matches when they could have done with a little bit of luck. Veteran Damien Gunning, Fergal Reilly and Stephen Sommers were particularly impressive in a game that took some of the pressure off Milltown with two matches remaining in the group section. Milltown's impressive form over the past two years has been rewarded by the fact that three of their players were called onto the Westmeath Under-21 panel for the 2005 campaign and Jim believes that any team doing well will help their players get noticed. "It can be hard sometimes for players at intermediate and junior level to get noticed by the county selectors but certainly when a team is doing well, it can make all the difference. "We had Fergal Reilly, Stephen Sommers and Ciaran Byrne on this year's under-21 panel and they are talented footballers who may not have been noticed were it for the club's form lately," added Jim. Milltown faced their third tough task of the campaign when Rosemount were the opposition for their fourth outing of the championship. Rosemount have failed to live up to expectations in recent years but are always one of the favourites for the intermediate title. It was back to old ways for Milltown as they went away from the match wondering what might have been. Four points separated the sides at the end, 1-8 to 0-7. The Rathconrath side pushed their opponents all the way but once again lacked the killer instinct needed at this level. In their last match in the group, Milltown had the added pressure of knowing that a defeat to Mullingar Shamrocks would leave them in a relegation play-off and one step away from a return to the junior ranks. But when the chips are down, Milltown have shown in the past that they have the character and determination to rise to the occasion and that's exactly what they did against the town team. A 3-8 to 1-10 win earned Milltown their place in this year's intermediate championship and was a step closer to beating their record of staying in the grade for more than three years. Jim said: "We have made a habit over the past 30 years of lasting only three years in the intermediate championship. It's always disappointing to go down so it was definitely a relief to stay up last year. "There is a good crop of young lads coming through and they all have potential. Fellas like the Reilly brothers, Stephen Sommers, Michael Connell and Ciaran Burke are all talented footballers and can help carry on the tradition of this club." Success did not entirely elude the club in 2004 as their second team won Division 7 of the all county football league. The club have been forced to amalgamate with Ballymore at underage level and Jim admits that this partnership has been a great success in recent years, while Ballynacargy have also come into the equation. "In a sparsely populated area like ours, we have to join up with other clubs to give the young lads games. We have a great relationship with the other clubs and that helps a lot," pointed out Jim. "We now field teams at all levels of underage under the banner of Millmoor Gaels and although we haven't won that much, it's great to see the young lads playing football. With all the new housing developments in the bigger towns, their teams are benefiting from the population boom, while the smaller clubs are getting weaker all the time." Despite coming from a rural area, Milltown are a club that are growing and the evidence of this is in their fine complex built at their GAA grounds. New dressing rooms, meeting room and a community centre have been constructed in the last few years and the official opening of the dressing rooms is expected to take place this summer. Milltown are a club that are destined for big things on and off the field and with the management team of Martin Lynn, Gerry and Eddie Sommers at the helm once again for the 2005 championship, then it would take a brave man to bet against the men for Rathconrath to cause a surprise or two during the campaign. Tweet

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