WESTMEATH will have a new man in charge in 2025 after Dessie Dolan announced his departure as senior football boss.
The Garrycastle man has stepped down following a season that saw his side achieve promotion back to Division 2 of the National League.
Dolan served as a selector under Jack Cooney when Westmeath claimed the inaugural Tailteann Cup in 2022.
He was promoted to the hotseat in September of that year after Cooney made way in order to take up a full-time player development role in Croke Park.
Dolan, whose backroom team included ex-Dublin star Jason Sherlock, said in a statement: “The Tailteann Cup success and gaining promotion to Division 2 this year are two significant occasions for our footballers which I was proud to be a part of.
“We as a management team worked extremely hard to maintain the highest of standards for our footballers and I believe our performances in the All-Ireland series give a lot of optimism for the quality of players within the county.”
In Dolan’s first season at the helm, Westmeath held their own in the Sam Maguire group stages as they drew with Tyrone and lost by just a point to recently-crowned All-Ireland champions Armagh.
They competed well again in this year’s campaign despite coming up short against the Orchard, Galway and Derry.
The Lake County were crowned Division 3 champions at Croke Park in March by upsetting a hotly-fancied Down team. Still, Dolan is sure to have regrets that his two-year managerial reign did not yield a Championship win.
His side squandered an eight-point half-time lead in a Leinster quarter-final loss to Louth in 2023. And they fell at the first hurdle again in April when they were stunned by Wicklow.
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The 2004 All-Star forward added: “I always appreciated the great support from the Westmeath supporters. I hope we have given you some enjoyment and happy memories over the last three years.
“Finally, to the players, I greatly appreciated the dedication and time you sacrificed for the opportunity to play for Westmeath. I wish you all every success in your future endeavours.”
