Having spent the majority of his adult life away from the county of his roots, Dublin based solicitor John Ross could be forgiven for not keeping in touch with how his native Westmeath are doing at Gaelic football but nothing could be further from the truth. John is an ardent follower of Westmeath football and Maroon and White spoke to him about his thoughts on the future of Gaelic games in the county, while we couldn't let the interview go by without mentioning the historic Leinster final win in 2004. John grew up in Mullingar and not surprisingly played his club football with Mullingar Shamrocks. The year 1966 will live long in the memories of the Westmeath man and not because England won the World Cup, but the fact that John was a member of the Shamrocks' minor team and senior panel that won their respective championships that year. Indeed, the speedy wing-back could have had a treble of successes in '66 as he was also on the St Finian's panel that was defeated by the renowned St Jarlath's of Tuam in the All-Ireland colleges final, with only a point separating the sides at the finish. Jimmy Duggan starred for St. Jarlath's and went on later that year to win a Senior All-Ireland with the famous three-in-a-row Galway team. "It was a good start to my adult career alright, but we should have won the senior championship the following year. Shamrocks had a very strong side and were tipped by many to win, but we met an excellent Moate side in Athlone and they caught us on the hop in the last few minutes," said John. The beginning of his football career coincided with a surge in migration and people being forced to travel elsewhere for work, which left teams struggling for numbers. "That was just the situation during those times, lads had to go elsewhere for work and even if it was to Dublin, this meant that their football careers would be hindered as travelling was not as easy then," he revealed. " Many of the star players were away but some wonderful clubmen stayed at home and kept things together through the bad as well as the good times. There were players like the effervescent Paddy Cole, the Daly O'Dowd and Lambden brothers. There were the stalwart supporters like Jim Dalton and Peter Lynch and selectors Jimmy Bennett, Jimmy Traynor and Mick Reynolds. Mick always brought his sense of humour with him even on a filthy winter's day in Ballinacarrigy. I well remember sixteen of us in the dressing room, fifteen players, some dragged out of their homes, and Mick, the only selector. He interrupted his announcement of the team, saying that he wanted to make it very clear that this was a unanimous selection!" "The last year I played for Shamrocks I was captain of the team and we were controversially beaten by Kinnegad after a replay, that was my last game for the club." His football career was halted, although it would resume in later years. During his time at UCD, John concentrated on rugby and athletics with some success. He has particularly happy memories of College Park for both sports but particularly an Irish Universities 220 yards championship win in 1972.His rugby career saw him represent Mullingar, UCD and Lansdowne where his speed helped get across the try line on many occasions. In the early eighties, John moved to Wicklow where he settled in Grangecon on the outskirts of Baltinglass. Ironically, so long after he had given up on his GAA career, the Mullingar native threw on his football boots once again at the age of 34. Amazingly, in his first year with local club Stratford-on-Slaney, John earned a Wicklow intermediate football championship medal, 17 years after winning his last honour in the game. "I was pleasantly pleased to win an intermediate medal with the club, especially as it had been some years since I last played football. I was fortunate enough to play then with some very skilled footballers including Nick and Frank O'Neill, who never got quite the recognition they deserved," stressed John. The summer of 2004 also holds fond memories for all Westmeath gaels and John is no different as he saw Westmeath win the Leinster senior title for the very first time. However, last year's performances in the league and championship soon brought Lake County followers down from cloud nine. Relegation from Division One, a first round exit from Leinster and defeat to Clare in the qualifiers left all concerned bewildered, while Paidi O'Se's decision to step down after two years in charge added to the heartache. "Winning the Leinster title was an amazing achievement and one that was thoroughly deserved. The scenes at the end of the replay were amazing. I must say that the Laois supporters were very gracious in defeat. I was sitting beside some during the match and was delighted when they waited with me to witness the celebrations at the end," added John. "It was great also to see Paddy Collins, although a Meath man, rewarded for all he has contributed over so many years to Westmeath football, as a player, an outstanding referee and official". "To be honest I was not that surprised that the footballers had a bad year last season. Generally, it is very hard to keep the momentum going and that looks to have been the case, but hopefully they can get back up there this year. "Offaly will be tough opponents in the first round, but Tomas O'Flatharta has made a lot of changes to the panel and hopefully these lads will settle in quickly. The league campaign will be very important this year. "I suppose all Westmeath supporters would love to see us beat Meath in the Leinster championship, this has become more of an issue in the last few years, since Westmeath rose to prominence." John revealed that he is not the only Westmeath supporter in the family as his younger sons Gordon and Don have shown their allegiance to the Lake County in the past. "I brought the lads to a Leinster club match between Mullingar Shamrocks and Baltinglass in the mid-nineties. The two boys have lived all their lives in the parish of Baltinglass but, to my surprise, I found them cheering for Shamrocks. I had not quite realised how obvious it would be to them where my deepest loyalty lay," admitted John. Despite not having resided in the county for the past 35 years, John will continue to support Westmeath's footballers even though he is busy running his own solicitor's firm. John's career has been unusual in that when his legal studies were completed, he decided to take an Economics degree, before commencing work as a Chartered Accountant with Coopers & Lybrand. Then, John took up a position with Vincent & Beatty Solicitors based in Fitzwilliam Square. After eight years as a partner in the firm, he made the decision to open his own business along with Michael Hayes and in 1985 Ross & Hayes Solicitors were established. Situated on Mespil Road for the past 21 years, the company has built up a good practice and John believes his background has helped promote the business. "In the last 21 years, we built a good practice. My background has led to many references of new clients particularly in the corporate and commercial areas. Fortunately business has been good and hopefully it will continue that way." John's other great passions are fox-hunting and National Hunt racing. He is a member of the Kildare Hunt Club which owns the famed Punchestown racecourse. John has been a director there for over 4 years now. "We have been delighted to have the Westmeath Supporters Club at the Punchestown Festival meeting over the last few years and look forward to continuing that association into the future". Tweet

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