After a disastrous 2002, the Westmeath senior footballers have bounced back impressively this year, already capturing the National League Division 2 title. Wing forward Fergal Wilson is hoping the success will augur well for the championship. How times have changed in Westmeath football! Two years ago, the county celebrated the capture of the National League Division 2 title as if it were an All-Ireland success. Yet, when the same title was annexed on May 4 last, it was barely acknowledged by some supporters. "The celebrations were a bit more subdued this time," says Westmeath wing forward Fergal Wilson, who scored three points in the final against Limerick. "In contrast to 2001, there was no real hype around the county. While the close proximity of the championship game against Carlow may have had something to do with it, I think the main reason for the lack of euphoria was that supporters now expect more than a Division 2 title. "Our ambitions are higher now than they were two years ago and it's probably going to take a major championship success to get supporters excited again. The supporters are entitled to expect big things at this stage because we really should be aiming to win a Leinster title this year," he adds. While delighted to have won his second national title in Croke Park, the Tubberclair clubman notes that the important thing was to have achieved promotion back to Division 1 after a nightmare 2002. "After last year, we just wanted to get back into a winning habit again," he reveals. "Promotion back to Division 1 was the number one objective and, while some of our performances were patchy, we achieved what we set out to achieve. To end up winning the Division 2 title was nice, but it wasn't something we got carried away with. "I think it says a lot for the character of the team that we were able to bounce back after such a disastrous 2002. With the injuries and everything, last year was a drag and it was very hard to enjoy your football when things were like that. But thankfully we've got back to winning ways this year and we're enjoying our football once again." Operating from Division 2A, Westmeath were victorious in all of their outings except for the clash with Offaly. They subsequently beat Longford and Limerick by one-point margins to capture the Division 2 crown for the second time in three years. Most Westmeath followers would agree that this year's success wasn't achieved with the same swagger or style as in 2001, but Wilson still feels that Westmeath are a better team now. "Two years ago, we placed a big emphasis on the league because it was Luke Dempsey's first year in charge and he was building a new team. We had a number of big wins along the way and it set us up nicely for a good run in the championship. "This year, it has been more about the results than the performances. We were not at our best for the league, but still managed to grind out results in the games against Leitrim, Antrim, Longford and Limerick. It mightn't always have been pretty, but it was effective. "We showed a lot of maturity in this year's league which enabled us to win those tight games. The only bad performance we gave was against Offaly, but thankfully we still got promoted. When all is said and done, we won out a division that contained 16 teams and it has to be regarded as a good achievement. I'm sure the other 15 teams would like to have been in our position" After the Division 2 final victory over Limerick, Luke Dempsey pointed out that the team has been virtually rebuilt since 2001, with 10 new faces on show. While acknowledging that there has been a sizeable turnover of players, Wilson feels the figure is slightly misleading. "Players have come in and out over the past two years, but I wouldn't say there has been drastic changes in personnel. With the exception of Ger Heavin, David Murphy, John Keane and Cathal Mullin, most of the same faces are still there. "A bit like last year, we've been unlucky with injuries. I'm sure the likes of David Mitchell, Michael Ennis, Paul Conway and David O'Shaughnessy would have had an involvement in the league final if they weren't out with injuries," he says. The Athlone IT student, who was the 'baby' of the Westmeath All-Ireland winning under 21 team in 1999, is fulsome in his praise of Johnny Mills, who has taken over the training duties this season. "Johnny has done an excellent job and our fitness levels have improved as the year has gone on. He's pacing us well. While the training is tough, you always feel good after it. Johnny has brought a new approach to training and we're all reaping the benefits. He has something different planned for us every night which helps to keep the thing interesting." A key man for Tubberclair in their intermediate championship triumph last year, Fergal reckons a first Leinster senior title could be within Westmeath's grasp in the near future. He claims that competition for places has never been greater and with a bit more consistency, Westmeath would be a match for anyone. "This is an important year coming up for us," he admits. "I don't think it's unrealistic for us to be talking about winning a Leinster title over the next year or two. We've gained a lot of experience over the past three years and if we're to make the breakthrough, it's going to have to happen for us fairly shortly. "At the very least, we must take a big scalp in Leinster. I suppose Dublin or Meath would fit into this category." He concludes: "Probably the most disappointing aspect of the league was that we didn't really play for 70 minutes in any of our games. Our performances need to be more consistent. Other problems also need to be addressed, but I'd still like to think that we are going into the championship in reasonable enough shape." . Tweet

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