National Forum

Westmeath Football thread

(Oldest Posts First) - Go To The Latest Post


Replying To westmeathfan25:  "Confused as to how the pitch last night not being playable in return means "County Players are treated so badly in this county"
You said it yourself - coaching, nutrition, analysis, travel expenses - would you prefer if they did not spend that 1.2M on those things and instead put it towards the cost of building a COE? Or is your expectation that Westmeath should continue spending millions on the "badly treated players" and find another couple million somewhere to build a COE, because let's be honest, the previous fundraising that was meant to raise €1M didn't happen, so what happens next? And it can't be a continuous blame on the County Board - they can put in all the effort to get fundraising events up and running, but if people aren't willing to contribute then what happens - will you continue to solely blame them?"
Don't be confused, take off the blindfold and you will be fine. If you're an Inter County player, you're training 4 to 5 nights a week (huge commitment, travel, gym, recovery etc). Our County players are competing against counties where lads have a proper training base (floodlit, sand based pitches, back up facilities if needed, consistent structures etc.) while our County players themselves can be training on heavy pitches (if they are lucky enough to get one), often obtained at the last minute. This can have a sustained impact on players (increased risk of injury, disrupted preparation etc.) and over time can affect game performance. It doesn't match the standard of effort our players are giving but is a real competitive disadvantage. The Centre of Excellence should be the foundations, if you strip back what the €1.2m is being spent on, then our County players are left with nothing and will no longer be competitive. 110%, the County Board are to blame after years of hard failure, all talk and no action. What serious efforts have been made to get fundraising events off the ground? Can you honestly tell us what the County Board have achieved worthwhile? Money is being spent but not near enough is being created to build a Centre of Excellence, nothing since the Win A House draw last year, as far as I know. Roscommon, a County with a smaller population than us, had a net profit of €5.2m in 10 years (2014 to 2024), mainly from house draws and sponsorships. They have generated millions before even investing. Roscommon's success is down to a system they have built, a dedicated fundraising arm and strong County Board leadership, that brings massive buy in from Roscommon people so everyone is aligned. We have too many missing pieces unfortunately, the bucks stops with the County Board.

iarmhiabu (Westmeath) - Posts: 324 - 27/03/2026 10:09:52    2663438

Link

Replying To OverTheHill85:  "There is such nonsense behind the scenes, and the players and management teams aren't been treated well or fairly at all. This forum probably wouldn't post the list of things we could all spill about whats going on."
It is absolutely shocking what is going on, no surprise St Loman's grass pitch was playable for a League game last night!!

iarmhiabu (Westmeath) - Posts: 324 - 27/03/2026 10:12:31    2663439

Link

Replying To iarmhiabu:  "It is absolutely shocking what is going on, no surprise St Loman's grass pitch was playable for a League game last night!!"
Any more details on this? I noticed we were the only U20 games canceled on Wednesday.

Fighting-Cocks69 (Westmeath) - Posts: 158 - 27/03/2026 11:40:43    2663454

Link

Replying To iarmhiabu:  "It is absolutely shocking what is going on, no surprise St Loman's grass pitch was playable for a League game last night!!"
I agree, hopefully the blindfolds come off and people start to see what's really going on.

I'm not blaming St Loman's or Kinnegad, because I know my own club is in the same boat. But right now, there's a complete breakdown in trust between the clubs and the county board. It feels like the county board's default response is to shift the blame onto the clubs.

It's hard to believe that a pitch deemed unplayable on Wednesday night for a major U20 championship match was suddenly considered playable just 24 hours later for a Division 1 ACFL game. If that got picked up by the national media, we'd be a laughing stock.

At this stage, I think an EGM is needed as soon as possible. The county board is in a very poor position, and it's difficult to see how relationships with clubs can be repaired under the current circumstances.

I've no doubt that everyone involved with Westmeath GAA is doing their best, but the "my way or the highway" attitude from some individuals has really damaged how the board is viewed. Hopefully, a few step aside and we see new leadership come in.

Temple56 (Westmeath) - Posts: 639 - 27/03/2026 11:51:28    2663459

Link