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Westmeath county football team

Westmeath
Sport:Football
Irish:An Iarmhí
Nickname(s):The Lake men[1]
County board:Westmeath GAA
Manager:Vacant
Captain:Kevin Maguire[2]
Home venue(s):Cusack Park, Mullingar
Recent competitive record
Current All-Ireland status:Leinster (PR) in 2024
Last championship title:None
Current NFL Division:3 (2nd in 2024; promoted to Division 2)
Last league title:None
First colours
Second colours

The Westmeath county football team represents Westmeath in men's Gaelic football and is governed by Westmeath GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the Leinster Senior Football Championship and the National Football League.

Westmeath's home ground is Cusack Park, Mullingar. The team's manager is vacant.

The team last won the Leinster Senior Championship in 2004, have never won the All-Ireland Senior Championship but won the National League five times.

History

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Westmeath's history is that of a minor county which only recently rose to the higher ranks of football. Its 2004 Leinster Senior Football Championship (SFC) provincial title was presaged by a 1995 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship (MFC) title and victory in the 1999 All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship.

1935–1995

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Another generation of Westmeath players took part in the first week-night fixture in the GAA championship: on 20 June 1935 they played Meath in Kells and lost by a scoreline of 2–7 to 0–9. The footballers won the 1929 Leinster Junior Football Championship (JFC), lost to Dublin by ten points in 1960 and then defeated Dublin to reach the 1931 Leinster SFC final. The team defeated Carlow, Laois and Offaly to advance to a 1949 Leinster SFC final against Meath, but was well beaten on both occasions. Twenty years later the team reached the National Football League semi-final. Westmeath defeated Dublin again in the 1967 Leinster SFC and the 1984 Centenary Cup campaign and qualified for a second League semi-final in 1994.

2001–present

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In 2001, the team went on an All-Ireland SFC run that lasted for an unprecedented nine games, including an extra-time win against Mayo in Roscommon. Prominent players in this campaign were Ger Heavin, Dessie Dolan, Rory O'Connell, Damien Healy and David Mitchell, with other players occasionally coming to prominence, including Martin Flanaghan, Fergal Wilson, Paul Conway, David O'Shaughnessy and Fergal Murray. The team's campaign ended when it lost to Meath in a 2001 All-Ireland SFC quarter-final replay. Uneventful 2002 and 2003 seasons followed and Westmeath parted terms with its then manager, Luke Dempsey.

Former Kerry player and manager Páidí Ó Sé was brought in to manage the senior team some months later, after he had been removed from his role as Kerry senior manager. The following year, under the management of Ó Sé, Westmeath progressed to the 2004 Leinster Senior Football Championship Final and won a first ever Leinster SFC title with a replayed victory over Laois (having previously beaten Wexford, Dublin and Offaly).[3] However, the team tamely exited its second All-Ireland SFC quarter-final — losing to Derry. That campaign is covered in the documentary film Marooned.

Ó Sé quit Westmeath at the end of a poor 2005 season and his assistant Tomás Ó Flatharta replaced him. After a poor league campaign, in which the team nevertheless secured promotion from Division 2, Offaly knocked Westmeath out of the Leinster SFC in the first round. However, wins over London, Limerick, Sligo and, then, a historic defeat of Galway, at Pearse Stadium in Salthill, set up a third All-Ireland SFC quarter-final for the team in six years[4] — against Dublin on this occasion. Westmeath did not live up to expectations in that game and sustained a ten-point defeat.

Westmeath staged a strong second half display to capture the 2008 Division 2 National Football League title for the third time, and the first since 2003 following a five-point win over Dublin at Páirc Tailteann in Navan. The scoreline in that game was Westmeath 0–15, Dublin 0–10.

Dublin defeated Westmeath by 27 points in the 2009 Leinster SFC quarter-final. Ó Flatharta resigned as Westmeath manager after the team's defeat to neighbour Meath on 11 July 2009.

The county board, searching for a manager after the resignation of Ó Flatharta, appointed Brendan Hackett as manager in September 2009, with the choice of someone who had not managed at that level for many years seen as unexpected.[5][6] Hackett included Michael Carruth as a masseur and Eoin Rheinisch as part of "physical preparations" on his backroom team.[7] Westmeath embarked on a second successive league campaign without winning a game and the team was relegated to Division 3 of the National Football League.[8] Hackett resigned in April 2010.[9] He did not contest a single championship match.[6]

Under the management of Tom Cribbin the team reached consecutive Leinster SFC finals in 2015 and 2016. This was a first in the team's history.[10] The team also won the 2017 NFL Division 4 title.[10] Colin Kelly was appointed Cribbin's successor as Westmeath manager on a two-year term in late 2017 but left in mid-2018, citing family commitments.[11][12]

Jack Cooney's appointment as Westmeath senior manager was ratified in September 2018, making him the first Westmeath native to fill the role since 1992.[13] Under Cooney's management the team won the 2019 O'Byrne Cup, its first time to win that competition since 1988. Later that year it won the 2019 NFL Division 3 title. In 2022, Westmeath won the inaugural Tailteann Cup, defeating Cavan in the final at Croke Park.[14] Cooney resigned unexpectedly the following month,[15] and was succeeded by Dessie Dolan.[16] Dolan walked in August 2024.[17]

Current panel

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Team as per Westmeath vs Derry in the 2024 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Group 1 Round 3, 15 June 2024

No. Player Position Club
1 Jason Daly Goalkeeper St Loman's Mullingar
2 Jamie Gonoud Right corner back Tyrrellspass
3 Charlie Drumm Full back The Downs
4 Kevin Maguire (c) Left corner back Caulry
5 James Dolan Right half back Garrycastle
6 Ronan Wallace Centre back Multyfarnham
7 David Lynch Left half back St Malachy's
8 Ray Connellan Midfield Athlone
9 Andy McCormack Midfield Rosemount
10 Jonathan Lynam Right half forward The Downs
11 Ronan O'Toole Centre forward St Loman's Mullingar
12 Sam McCartan Left half forward St Loman's Mullingar
13 Luke Loughlin Right corner forward The Downs
14 John Heslin Full forward St Loman's Mullingar
15 Senan Baker Left corner forward Caulry
No. Player Position Club
16 Jack Connaughton Substitute Caulry
17 Shane Allen Substitute Athlone
18 Conor Dillon Substitute Milltown
19 Danny McCartan Substitute St Loman's Mullingar
20 Robbie Forde Substitute Moate All Whites
21 Eoin Mulvihill Substitute Garrycastle
22 Matthew Whittaker Substitute Tubberclair
23 Daniel Scahill Substitute Shandonagh
24 Lorcan Dolan Substitute Castledaly
25 Jack Smith Substitute Skerries Harps
26 Kieran Martin Substitute Maryland

Management team

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Managerial history

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Westmeath have a history of appointing "foreign" managers, with Páidí Ó Sé the most successful appointment; Ó Sé led Westmeath to the 2004 Leinster SFC (a first in the team's history).[20]

Dates Name Origin Honours
19??–1992 Brian Murtagh Club in Westmeath? ?
1992–1995[21] Mattie Kerrigan    —
1995–1997[22] Barney Rock    —
1997–2000[23] Brendan Lowry     —
2000–2003[24] Luke Dempsey   2003 NFL Division 2
2003–2005[25][26] Páidí Ó Sé    2004 Leinster Senior Football Championship
2005–2009[27][28] Tomás Ó Flatharta    2006 NFL Division 2,
2008 NFL Division 2
2009–2010[29][30] Brendan Hackett    —
2010–2013[31][32] Pat Flanagan     —
2013–2014[33][34][35] Paul Bealin    —
2014–2017[36][10] Tom Cribbin   2017 NFL Division 4
2017–2018[11][12] Colin Kelly    —
2018–2022[13][15] Jack Cooney Coralstown/Kinnegad 2019 O'Byrne Cup,
2019 NFL Division 3,
2022 Tailteann Cup
2022–2024[16][17] Dessie Dolan Garrycastle —
2024– Vacant —

Pat Flanagan was initially appointed as interim manager in April 2010 following Brendan Hackett's departure.[37][38][39]

Players

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Notable players

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For individual player details, see Category:Westmeath inter-county Gaelic footballers.

Records

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Top scorers

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Championship only, as of game played 9 July 2022.[40]

# Name Career Total Goals Points Appearances Average
1 John Heslin 2011– 177 5 162
2 Dessie Dolan 1999–2014 175 4 163
3 Denis Glennon 2004–20?? 82 1 79
4 Kieran Martin 2009– 61 8 37
5 Fergal Wilson 1999–2011 60 1 57

All Stars

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Westmeath has 5 All Stars, as of 2008. 4 different players have won, as of 2008.

Winners

2001: Rory O'Connell
2004: Dessie Dolan1st win, 3rd nomination
2004: John Keane
2008: Gary Connaughton1st win, 3rd nomination
2008: John Keane2nd win

Progression by player and year
Player 2001 2004 2008
Rory O'Connell Yes — —
Dessie Dolan — Yes —
John Keane — Yes Yes
Gary Connaughton — — Yes
Nominations

1999: Dessie Dolan[41]
2001: Dessie Dolan[42]2nd nomination
2001: Ger Heavin[42]
2001: David Mitchell[42]
2004: Gary Connaughton[43]
2004: Donal O'Donoghue[43]
2004: Denis Glennon[43]
2006: Gary Connaughton[44]2nd nomination
2008: Michael Ennis[45]
2015: Kieran Martin[46]

Honours

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National

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, 2008[47]

Provincial

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References

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  1. ^ "Duncan returns from suspension for Lake men". Hogan Stand. 9 February 2018.
  2. ^ "Kevin Maguire Named Westmeath Football Captain for 2021". Midlands 103. 12 May 2021.
  3. ^ a b O'Rourke, Colm (25 July 2004). "Páidí guides midlands army to glory". Sunday Independent. Retrieved 25 July 2004.
  4. ^ "Westmeath battle past Galway". RTÉ. 29 July 2006.
  5. ^ "Hackett surprise choice in Westmeath". Irish Examiner. 9 September 2009.
  6. ^ a b "Hackett in shock exit". Independent.ie. 15 April 2010.
  7. ^ "Carruth and Rheinisch boost Westmeath". Irish Independent. 16 October 2009.
  8. ^ "Hackett resigns as Westmeath manager". Irish Examiner. 17 April 2010.
  9. ^ "Westmeath manager Hackett steps down". The Irish Times. 17 April 2010.
  10. ^ a b c "Cribbin steps down in Westmeath". Hogan Stand. 15 July 2017.
  11. ^ a b "Westmeath appoint Kelly as new manager". Hogan Stand. 27 September 2017.
  12. ^ a b "Colin Kelly quits as Westmeath football manager". RTÉ. 9 June 2018.
  13. ^ a b "Westmeath announce appointment of new football and hurling managers". The42.ie. 13 September 2018.
  14. ^ a b Verney, Michael (9 July 2022). "Westmeath win inaugural Tailteann Cup as late goal sinks Cavan". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 9 July 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  15. ^ a b "Jack Cooney exits Westmeath to take up GAA player development job". RTÉ. 27 August 2022.
  16. ^ a b c d Ryan, Eoin (21 September 2022). "Dessie Dolan confirmed as new Westmeath football manager". RTÉ. Retrieved 21 September 2022.
  17. ^ a b Lawlor, Damian (9 August 2024). "Dessie Dolan brings time with Westmeath to an end". RTÉ. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  18. ^ a b Boyle, Donnchadh (17 November 2022). "Jason Sherlock joins Westmeath backroom team as performance coach". Irish Independent.
  19. ^ "Keane edge can give a 'bounce' to Westmeath". Irish Independent. 3 December 2021.
  20. ^ Breheny, Martin (24 November 2012). "The import and export business". Irish Independent.
  21. ^ Crowe, Dermot (5 August 2001). "Battlers who thrive on hard exchanges". Sunday Independent. Kerrigan spent almost four years in charge of Westmeath up to 1995, arriving only weeks before a championship match in 1992 against Carlow. From such a sorry state of affairs he managed to set the revolution in place, raising them from Division 4 league status to Division 2 before his departure.
  22. ^ Foley, Cliona (1 July 2000). "Westmeath only lack belief: Rock". Irish Independent. A fortnight after Dublin's wildly-celebrated 1995 All-Ireland victory, former star Barney Rock set off for Mullingar to begin his reign as Westmeath football manager... In his two seasons with Westmeath, Rock acted as both senior and Under-21 boss and was immediately impressed.
  23. ^ "GAA: Lowry vacates Westmeath post". RTÉ. 29 July 2000. Lowry has been in the hot seat for the past three years, during a time when Westmeath emerged as competitive challengers in Leinster, aided by the success of their minor and Under-21 teams.
  24. ^ Hickey, Paddy (28 August 2003). "Dempsey decides to quit Westmeath". Irish Independent. Dempsey led Westmeath to the All-Ireland minor title in 1995 and the All-Ireland U-21 crown in 1999 before taking over from Brendan Lowry as senior manager.
  25. ^ Keys, Colm (7 November 2003). "Ó Sé recruits Westmeath secretary". Irish Independent.
  26. ^ Foley, Cliona (4 July 2005). "Páidí exits not with a bang but in a whimper". Irish Independent. Westmeath got a lesson in the cruel, harsh reality of football in Ennis yesterday when they were quietly ushered out the championship back door by Clare, and their superstar manager Páidí Ó Sé called it a day.
  27. ^ "Ó Flatharta confirmed as Westmeath boss". Irish Examiner. 1 October 2005.
  28. ^ "O Flatharta steps down". The Irish Times. 13 July 2009.
  29. ^ "Hackett for Westmeath". Irish Independent. 9 September 2009.
  30. ^ "Brendan Hackett quits Westmeath". RTÉ. 17 April 2010.
  31. ^ "Flanagan appointed as Westmeath senior and U21 manager". Westmeath Examiner. 2 September 2010.
  32. ^ Roche, Frank (1 September 2013). "Axed Flanagan hurt over 'baffling' Westmeath exit". Independent.ie.
  33. ^ "Bealin Confirmed As Westmeath Manager". 98FM. 12 September 2013.
  34. ^ "Paul Bealin's Westmeath management ended after one season". Newstalk. 7 August 2014.
  35. ^ "Hunt for new Westmeath football manager begins as clubs axe Bealin". Westmeath Examiner. 7 August 2014.
  36. ^ "Tom Cribbin appointed as Westmeath boss". RTÉ. 5 November 2014.
  37. ^ "Pat Flanagan appointed as interim football manager". Westmeath Examiner. 28 April 2010.
  38. ^ "Pat Flanagan takes control of Westmeath". RTÉ. 21 April 2010.
  39. ^ "Pat Flanagan takes up football reins". Hogan Stand. 30 April 2010.
  40. ^ "Heslin moves to top of Westmeath scoring charts". Hogan Stand. 12 July 2022.
  41. ^ "GAA: Eircell All-star nominations announced". RTÉ. 27 November 1999.
  42. ^ a b c "Tohill left out of All Star nominations". RTÉ. 1 November 2001.
  43. ^ a b c "Twelve Kerry men nominated for All Stars". RTÉ. 19 October 2004.
  44. ^ "2006 Football All Star nominees announced". RTÉ. 18 October 2006.
  45. ^ Breheny, Martin (25 September 2008). "Vodafone All Star football nominations 2008". Irish Independent.
  46. ^ Heneghan, Conor (2015). "The nominations for the 2015 GAA/GPA Gaelic Football All-Stars have been announced". JOE.ie.
  47. ^ "Depleted Dubs fail to fire as Flanagan stars". Irish Independent. 28 April 2008. p. 56.
  48. ^ "FL3 final: Egan inspired Westmeath claim silverware at Croker". Hogan Stand. 6 April 2019.
  49. ^ Cahill, Jackie (8 April 2017). "First league title in 9 years for Westmeath footballers as they rout Wexford by 13 points". The42.ie.
  50. ^ "Tone was right for Westmeath". Irish Independent. 25 April 1983. p. 12.
  51. ^ Kelly, Niall (12 July 2015). "Dublin are kings of Leinster again after blitzing battling Westmeath". The42.ie.
  52. ^ Keane, Paul (17 July 2016). "Boys in Blue cruise to another Leinster title at Croke Park". RTÉ.
  53. ^ Cahill, Jackie (17 July 2016). "Dublin blitz Westmeath and make history by claiming Leinster 6-in-a-row: It was a landmark victory for the Sky Blues at Croke Park". The42.ie.
  54. ^ "Recap: Dublin 0–10 Westmeath 1–12, O'Byrne Cup final". RTÉ. 18 January 2019. 19:51 Stat [Dressing room all set for the players arrival ahead of tonight's O'Bryne Cup Final v Dublin in Parnell Park at 8PM. Hopefully we will be lifting our first title since 1988. Let's give it everything!!!!#iarmhiabu#westmeathgaa pic.twitter.com/Ca3tVUkrBv — westmeathgaaofficial (@westmeath_gaa) January 18, 2019] It has been a 31-year wait for Westmeath
  55. ^ "Dorney goal kills off Westmeath's brave bid for third under-21 crown". Westmeath Examiner. 8 April 2010.
  56. ^ Kelly, Niall (14 July 2013). "Kildare blitz Westmeath to take Leinster minor title". The42.ie.
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