Westmeath Minotaurs

The Westmeath Minotaurs are an American football club located in Mullingar, County Westmeath, Ireland. Founded in 2011, they are a part of American Football Ireland (AFI) and play their home matches at Shay Murtagh Park, the home ground of Mullingar RFC.^[1] The Westmeath Minotaurs field both Senior and Youth teams for tackle football and the club also supports teams in the flag football division. As of 2024, the club was competing in the AFI Premier Division.^[2]

Westmeath Minotaurs

Sport	American Football
Founded	2011
First season	2013
League	American Football Ireland
Based in	Mullingar
Home ground	Shay Murtagh Park
Colours	Purple, White, Black
Divisions	Senior Kitted: Division 1 Flag: Premier Division
Championships	Flag: 2015
League titles	Flag: 2015, 2022, 2024
Division titles	Senior Kitted: 2022 Flag: 2015, 2015-16, 2022
Playoff berths	Senior Kitted: 2016, 2018, 2019, 2022 Flag: 2014-15, 2015, 2015-16, 2017, 2022, 2024
Website	westmeathminotaurs.com

History

The Westmeath Minotaurs were established in 2011^[1] and commenced Senior kitted football in 2013^[3] as part of American Football Ireland's Division 1. In 2022, they secured promotion to the Premier Division after winning the Division 1 Bowl against the University of Limerick Vikings.^[4]

The flag football team began competing in 2014 and won the inaugural Emerald Bowl, becoming the Irish flag football champions in 2015.^[5][6] In 2022, they claimed victory in Glas Bowl III, earning promotion back to the Flag Premier Division.^[7] The club celebrated its tenth anniversary competitive season in 2022, counting the cancelled seasons of 2020 and 2021.^[8] After being relegated once again in their return to the Premier Division in 2023, the Minotaurs won Glas Bowl V in 2024 to re-earn promotion.^[9]

In 2022, the Senior Kitted Team defeated the Philadelphia Blue Flame by a score of 15-8 in an international friendly.^[10][11] Then in 2023, they won their first ever game in the Premier Division, the highest level division in AFI, over the Craigavon Cowboys, 38-0.^[12]

Season-by-season record

Senior Kitted

Legend
Pct	The team's winning percentage for the season
†	Shamrock Bowl champions
‡	Division 1 champions
*	Division championship appearance
^	Playoff appearance
	Relegated

Westmeath Minotaurs Senior Kitted record by season

Season	League	Division	Regular season					Postseason results	Head coach	Refs
			Finish	W	L	T	Pct
2013	AFI	Division 1	7th	1	6	1	.188		Paddy Lally
2014	AFI	Division 1	3rd	4	4	0	.500
2015	AFI	Division 1	6th	0	8	0	.000
2016	AFI	Division 1	4th^	4	4	0	.500	Forfeited Semifinal (at Admirals)	Diarmaid Hyland
2017	AFI	Division 1	5th	3	5	0	.375		Paddy Lally
2018	AFI	Division 1	3rd^	6	2	0	.750	Lost Wild Card (Rhinos) 13-3	Conor Brennan
2019	AFI	Division 1	2nd*	6	2	0	.750	Won Semifinal (Eagles) 27-22 Lost IAFL-1 Bowl (vs. Cowboys) 28-27
2020	AFI	Division 1	-	-	-	-	-		Bill Dougherty	[A]
2021	AFI	Division 1	-	2	0	0	1.000			[B]
2022	AFI	Division 1‡	1st‡	7	1	0	.875	Won Semifinal (Vipers) 41-6 Won Division 1 Bowl (vs. Vikings) 16-13		[C]
2023	AFI	Premier Division	6th	2	6	0	.250
2024	AFI	Premier Division	8th	0	8	0	.000		Adam Corcoran	[D]
Totals				39	49	1	.444	All-time regular season record (2013–2024)		[13]
				3	3	—	.500	All-time postseason record (2013–2024)
				42	52	1	.447	All-time regular & postseason record (2013–2024)

Flag

Legend
Pct	The team's winning percentage for the season
†	Emerald Bowl champions
‡	Glas Bowl champions
*	Championship appearance
^	Playoff appearance
	Relegated

Westmeath Minotaurs Flag record by season

Season	League	Division	Regular season					Postseason results	Refs
			Finish	W	L	T	Pct
2014-15	AFI	Midlands^	1st^	9	1	0	.900	Lost Semifinal (Rebels) 25-15
2015	AFI†	South†	1st†	6	2	0	.750	Won Semifinal (at Cowboys) 37-31 Won Summer Final (at Eagles) 27-25 Won Emerald Bowl I (vs. Eagles) 19-13	[E]
2015-16	AFI	Midlands*	1st*	8	0	0	1.000	Won Wild Card (Elks) 39-7 Won Semifinal (Reapers) 27-19 Lost Emerald Bowl III (vs. Cowboys) 36-0
2016-17	AFI	West	2nd	4	4	0	.500
2017	AFI	Premier Division	2nd^	5	2	1	.688	Lost Semifinal (at Eagles) 41-26 Won 3rd Place Game (Cowboys) 39-31
2018	AFI	West	2nd	6	4	0	.600
2019	AFI	Premier Division	9th	4	4	0	.500
2020	AFI	Premier Division	-	-	-	-	-		[F] [G]
2021	AFI	Division 1 South	5th	4	2	0	.667
2022	AFI	Division 1 South‡	1st‡	8	2	0	.800	Won Divisional Final (Crusaders) 45-18 Won Glas Bowl III (vs. Knights) 46-12	[H]
2023	AFI	Premier Division South	5th	1	9	0	.100		[I]
2024	AFI	Division 1 Central‡	2nd‡	8	2	0	.800	Won Wild Card (vs Mavericks) 48-28 Won Semifinal (Giants) 53-6 Won Glas Bowl V (vs. Dunboyne Wildcats) 19-7	[J]
Totals				77	36	1	.680	All-time regular season record (2014–2024)	[13]
				11	3	—	.786	All-time postseason record (2014–2024)
				88	39	1	.691	All-time regular & postseason record (2014–2024)

Notes

1. Season cancelled due to Covid-19 pandemic.
2. Season cancelled due to Covid-19 pandemic. Two friendly games were scheduled when restrictions were lifted.
3. Promoted to Premier Division after season.
4. Relegated to Division 1 after season
5. For this season, the winners of the Winter and Summer finals played each other in the Emerald Bowl.
6. Season cancelled due to Covid-19 pandemic.
7. Relegated to Division 1 after the season.
8. Promoted to Premier Division after season.
9. Relegated to Division 1 after the season.
10. Promoted to Premier Division after season.