As Westmeath continue their preparations for the 2006 championship campaign, hopes are high within the county that the Midlanders can repeat the performances of two years ago. Life long Westmeath supporter Fergal Lynam has followed the fortunes of the footballers through the bad times and the good leaving him with a good knowledge of the game within the county. Fergal is managing director of I.O Systems based in Athlone and he took time out from his busy schedule to talk to the Maroon and White about the current state of Westmeath football. Last year's campaign could be described as 'Annus Horriblis' for Westmeath's senior footballers. The Lake County began the season as Leinster champions and were thought by many to have a genuine chance of defending their title. Paidi O'Se's side were also established in Division One of the NFL and Westmeath looked set to have a long stay among the top teams in the country. However, the phrase 'football is a funny old game' can be applied to the GAA version too as relegation to Division two was soon followed by a championship exit at the hands of Kildare. To make matters worse, Westmeath were less than impressive in the qualifiers and having struggled to overcome a mediocre Tipperary side in the first round, Clare were deserved winners in round two. Paidi O'Se's decision to resign from his position in the immediate aftermath of the banner defeat culminated to compound Westmeath's misery and really make it a year to forget. Nonetheless, a new manager and revised squad has been put in place for the campaign as Thomas O'Flatharta begins his reign in charge and Fergal believes that last year's exploits can be forgotten very quickly. "Last year's performances were very disappointing, especially the games against Tipperary and Clare. On the day, Westmeath were very poor and showed no ambition and lacked passion. "Even going back to the Derry game in the All-Ireland quarterfinal the previous year, they looked a side happy with their lot, but who knows what may have happened, if they defeated Derry that day," said Fergal. "I believe the new management team will have a positive affect on the player's performances. Tomas O'Flatharta knows most of the players and he is well respected by them." Westmeath begin their Leinster championship campaign against Offaly and Fergal has an added interest in this clash as his father played with Offaly during the sixties. "I may be in an unique position as an avid Westmeath supporter as I always supported Offaly in their pursuits for glory. They have some very fine footballers and are real contenders for the Leinster championship. It will be a tough test for Westmeath, but one they certainly can overcome." Fergal has followed Westmeath up and down the length and breadth of the country for league and championship matches, which sees him state firmly that the Lake County are one of the best supported counties in the country. "Westmeath have always had great support down through the years. Even in the early nineties when things weren't going so well, their would be huge amount of support travelling Athlone native Fergal represented the county footballers at minor level in 1988, when he lined out at centre back on the Westmeath team that lost to Offaly in an epic three-match saga that year. Coincidentally, Offaly went on to contest the final of that year. Having played football with Athlone and hurling with Southern Gaels, it looked as if the GAA would dominate his sporting career, however that was not the case as Fergal established himself as quite an accomplished swimmer. "Swimming, along with the GAA, pretty much dominated my teenage years, when I use to train with Athlone Aces before school and GAA after school. I was fortunate enough to represent Ireland in the European Championship finals in Greece back in 1987 where I finished sixth in the 1500 freestyle," revealed Fergal. "During my time with the Irish team I spent a lot of time travelling up to Dublin in order to train with the team and this took up a lot of my time, but I still loved playing hurling and football." Fergal's company I.O. Systems began sponsoring Athlone footballers this year and the former player admits that expectations are high every year for the town team to do well in the championship. "Athlone have a very committed and strong team but, unfortunately didn't even qualify from the group, although it was the eventual champions The Downs, who defeated them and Athlone had their chances on the day. "They are definitely among the top four teams in the county. They have some excellent players at their disposal and hopefully they can win the championship next year," added Fergal. The Athlone native is also an avid supporter of Southern Gaels, who despite having a large catchment area to choose from, have never really lived up to their true potential, although Fergal admits they are competing against a number of sports. "The hurlers have a huge task on their hands trying to promote the game as Athlone is first and foremost known as a soccer town, while rugby and other sports are also very popular in the area." Fergal's sporting career was halted as his occupation took precedence when he moved to Japan in the early 1990's to take up a position with multi-national firm Okamoto Systems. While in Japan, Fergal continued to play football and swimming, but it soon became a social activity more so than a competitive one. Following three years with the company, it was decided that Fergal would be head of the European branch, which was coincidentally established in Athlone, Co. Westmeath. I.O Systems Ltd are subsidiary of Okamoto Kogyo in Tokyo, which is currently one of Japan's largest material handling companies. I.O Systems Ltd are one of the largest customised and automation conveying systems companies in Ireland. Operating from a large modern manufacturing premises in the Midlands town, the company employs over 100 staff and they carry out extensive work for businesses in Ireland, U.K and the European market. "We have been operating in Ireland since 1996 and carry out customised and automated material handling projects for the likes of An Post, Dell Computers, Carty Meats, Boston Scientific, Tyco Medical and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, to name just a few. "I didn't play much football when I came home, but played a bit of hurling for a few years. I'm just a supporter these days and spent a lot of my time following Westmeath, which I enjoy doing and look forward to this year's exploits," concluded Fergal. Westmeath supporters all over the world will be keen to see the fortunes of the county team take a turn for the better in 2006. They have tasted success at provincial level and are desperate for more of the same. Tweet

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