Dessie Dolan to take the reins at Westmeath

Westmeath legend Dessie Dolan looks set to be the next manager of the reigning Tailteann Cup champions.

The former All-Star and once the Lake County’s highest scorer was a part of John Cooney’s management team that won the Tailteann Cup earlier this year, and following Cooney’s departure looks likely to be ratified as the new boss at a county board meeting tonight.

This will be Dolan’s first head management position and there’s no better place to do it than the county he knows so well.

It was announced last month that Cooney would step down from his role at the top after four years of management, a surprise to many after the success of the summer.

In that announcement, Cooney said “I have had an extremely enjoyable spell involved in inter-county football, commencing as a selector with Westmeath almost 20 years ago, the highlight of that period being the annexing of the first Leinster title, under the leadership of the great Páidí Ó Sé.”

Cooney lead Westmeath to the Divison 3 title in 2019 and after relegation, just missed out on the same feat this year. Dolan will now look to build on that and prove that their Tailteann Cup success mirrors the excellence they have in the County as they push for Division 2 in the Spring.