O'Donoghue and Smyth absent from Westmeath panel
December 22, 2010
Westmeath's Donal O'Donoghue
Both have been mainstays of the team over the past five years or so, but have been left out of an extended panel, which will be cut to 26 for the National League. The retired quartet of Martin Flanagan, John Keane, Damien Healy and Derek Heavin are also missing from the list, but last season's captain Michael Ennis is included despite requiring shoulder surgery which will keep him sidelined until the start of the championship.
First-choice full back Kieran Gavin returns to the panel after spending last summer in San Francisco, while teenage sensation John Heslin is also included. Meanwhile, county hurling star Brendan Murtagh has joined fellow dual stars Conor Jordan and Paul Greville in the football fold.
There are just five survivors from the Lake County's 2004 Leinster championship winning team - Gary Connaughton, Dessie Dolan, Denis Glennon, Michael Ennis and Fergal Wilson.
Flanagan explained: "The panel will be cut down to 26 - the maximum allowed - after the O'Byrne Cup. Obviously we're going to need all these lads during the O'Byrne Cup, with some of our players involved with their colleges and so forth in the O'Byrne Cup.
"I think 26 is a very difficult number to work with, as you can't even have a full-sided training match, but we could be here until the start of the O'Byrne Cup if I start talking about that!"
Westmeath (provisional football panel)
Goalkeepers: G Connaughton, D Quinn, D Bryan.
Defenders: F Boyle, M Ennis, K McGuire, M Dalton, C Boyle, R Doyle, K Gavin, D Harte, T Warburton, R English, E Moore, J Gaffey, K Martin, J Dolan, M Curley, G Quinn.
Midfielders: D Duffy, C Jordan, A Finnan, P Bannon, J Heslin, N Kilcoyne, D Daly, D Corroon, B Murtagh.
Forwards: G Egan, P Greville, T McDaniel, C McCormack, J Durkan, S Quinn, C Lynam, P Sharry, D Dolan, David Glennon, P Tormey, A Devine, Denis Glennon, A Whitney, F Wilson, I Coffey, A Giles, J Harte. Tweet
