After their emphatic win over Wexford in the Allianz FL Division 4 final, Westmeath manager Tom Cribbin is pleased with the way youth and experience is combining to drive his side on.
The Lake County had 13 points to spare at Croke Park, with Cribbin keen to highlight the depth of the squad at his disposal.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport he said: "We have a very strong panel this year and a lot of good young lads are coming through. We also have good leaders in Paul Sharry, Ger Egan, John Heslin, Kevin Maguire and James Dolan to bring the young lads to the next level."
Assessing the league campaign as a whole, the Laois native added: "We played good, attractive, attacking football throughout.
"We're starting to play good football and there is a good shape to our team."
"That's the way we approached the whole year. I wouldn't have been happy with some of the scores we gave away late on today but the lads put in a huge shift and you'd have to be happy with everything they've done so far this year."
Indeed, what a difference a year makes after Westmeath sank to the bottom tier in 2016.
Reflecting on the upturn, Cribbin said: "Our panel wasn’t strong enough last year. Three or four of our key players got bad injuries. We didn't perform without them.
"We've dealt with it now. We're back up to Division 3.
"We're starting to play good football and there is a good shape to our team."
