KIERAN MARTIN won’t stop believing when Westmeath’s championship journey starts against Kildare.
The Lake men were relegated to Division 3 of the NFL before Sunday’s round 7 clash with Roscommon, but left Cusack Park with a spring in their step.
The Rossies led by 12 points after 26 minutes in Mullingar after goals from Diarmuid and Ciaráin Murtagh sent them 2-10 to 1-1 in front.
Luke Loughlin’s early green flag gave the hosts a lifeline, and a stunning second half revival saw them pull the game from the fire.
Athlone hitman Ray Connellan scored three two-pointers to drag them back into it, before Eoghan McCabe’s orange flag cut the deficit to two on 68 minutes.
The Rossies thought they had won before stalwart Martin, 34, fired over from outside the arc just after the buzzer to snatch a draw.
And the Maryland man hopes the fightback can kickstart their season ahead of their Leinster SFC quarter-final against Kildare on April 12 despite going down.
He said: “Bounces of a ball didn’t go our way or a decision didn’t go our way, but in fairness the management have been driving it on and saying ‘Let’s not bow on that, let’s not use that as a scapegoat.’
“It’s great to get a result, obviously we came to win but being 11 or 12 points down, it was great to come back and get the draw at the end.”
“We’re going to Newbridge now, Kildare are going to have huge numbers there so we need all the support that we can get because it can have an effect on games at the end.
“Even referee’s decisions if the crowd is behind his back, it might go your way so we need as many numbers as we can behind us.
“The crowds have been up and down with us throughout the year but in fairness, it’s the same faces we see here the whole time and we’re trying to build up momentum.”
Martin joined the squad in 2009. Their-long serving stalwart turns 35 this year and has watched huge changes sweep through the dressing room.
Hitman John Heslin bowed out last year at 32, and Martin considered following suit before committing to the cause under new boss Dermot McCabe – and plans to keep going.
He said: “I was kind of humming and hawing and I didn’t know what to do.
“But the way it’s gone now with the level of the club game, if you’re training here you’re going to be training with the club anyway.
“So I’m used to training at a high level for the last few years, and I want to keep it going as long as I can.”
