‘It would be huge to get back to Croke Park’ – Fiona Coyle

Having helped Westmeath to lift the All-Ireland intermediate title in 2021, team captain Fiona Coyle is determined to lead the Lake County back to Croke Park again as they prepare for Sunday's eagerly anticipated semi-final against neighbours Roscommon in Kingspan Breffni Park, Cavan (4pm).

Now in her second season as captain and with 12 years of senior football behind her, the experienced defender admits it would mean a huge amount to guide a new generation of Westmeath footballers to an All-Ireland final.

"Next Sunday is going to be huge and I just absolutely can't wait," said Coyle in anticipation of the semi-final.

"We've been building momentum nicely and we've had a huge win against Wexford in the quarter-final. We were just delighted we came out on top in the end. It's great to be looking forward to another All-Ireland semi-final."

Westmeath's impressive championship campaign has followed the disappointment of their Lidl National League campaign, but they benefited from the experience and Coyle believes it ultimately strengthened the squad.

"I think we took a lot of learning from the league. We were hugely disappointed, but it's definitely stood to us massively going into the Leinster Championship and the All-Ireland series. We just can't wait for the semi-final at the weekend. It's exactly where we want to be," she remarked.

Although she laughs when reminded she is now among the more senior members of the panel, Coyle acknowledges the value of experience within a squad that has been rejuvenated by an exciting crop of young players.

"I like that - experienced over older player! That suits me just fine," she joked, when reminded of her sterling service to the county. The blend of youth and experience has become one of Westmeath's greatest strengths this year as several former minor stars make the seamless transition to senior football.

"That's been absolutely huge for us. The minor girls who have come up through the ranks in recent years have just been superb. It goes to show how important that underage development is,” observed Coyle.

"The likes of Lara McCartan, Pip Ruane, Aoife Keegan, Caoimhe and Katie Kilmurray have been just superb. Those girls are so hungry for success. Against Wexford in the quarter-final we lost Vicky Carr early on and Aoife Keegan came in and slotted in seamlessly. Vicky has been instrumental for us, so to lose her was massive, but Aoife came in and she was brilliant. She even got a superb goal in the second half.

"The older players in the group, or more experienced players, have really stood up and helped blend that mix between the youth and the experienced girls," she added.

Westmeath will hope influential midfielder Vicky Carr recovers in time for Sunday's showdown.

Standing between Westmeath and another appearance at headquarters are neighbours Roscommon, who defeated Leitrim in the quarter-final to book their place in the last four.

"Roscommon are probably coming in under the radar a little bit, but they had a huge win against Leitrim in their quarter-final. We're going to do plenty of homework on them. But we're also going to focus on ourselves and work on our own style of play and develop that. There are a few things we probably weren't happy with in the Wexford game that we feel we could polish off. So we're mainly just focusing on ourselves, but we know how tough and tenacious Roscommon are, so we'll definitely have to do our homework on them," she said.

Westmeath came out on top when they last crossed paths with Roscommon in Ballynacargy during last year's league campaign. "We won last year's league contest, but they were tough opposition. They had really stylish forwards and were very strong defensively," Fiona observed.

With only the Shannon separating the counties, Sunday's encounter has the added spice of being a local derby, something Coyle believes should help create a terrific atmosphere in Breffni Park.

"We really just want people to keep the Westmeath flag flying high and we're hoping there will be a big turnout in Breffni Park on Sunday," said the St Mary's, Rochfortbridge star.

The team captain also believes the county's footballers have been inspired by the remarkable summer enjoyed by Westmeath football as a whole, following the men's historic Leinster triumph and run in the All-Ireland series.

"The men have been tremendous. So we're hoping to keep that ball rolling and give Westmeath supporters another day out in Croke Park," said Fiona.

There is a family connection between the men's and ladies' squads through sisters Lucy and Lara McCartan, whose brothers Sam and Danny featured prominently during the men's campaign.

"Lucy McCartan and Lara have been superb for Westmeath, and their brothers, Sam and Danny, on the other side are doing it for the Westmeath men. So it has just been fantastic," she noted.

Another key ingredient in Westmeath's progress has been the continuity provided by manager Frank Browne, who is now in his third year at the helm. Coyle believes the culture he has worked so hard to establish is now bearing fruit.

"Frank is all about building culture and it's taken three years to do that. We definitely feel like this year we're really strong as a group and really strong mentally. We feel like we're really tough. Even last year's semi-final against Tyrone, where we were pipped after extra-time, was huge for us. We feel that even the pain of thinking about that last year is really driving us on now," she remarked.

For Coyle personally, the opportunity to return to Croke Park with a new-look Westmeath team would represent another landmark moment in a distinguished county career.

"I was on that team in 2021. That's the last time we won in Croke Park. It's a new team now and we've had to build over the last few years. For this group, it would be huge to get back to Croke Park," she added.