Westmeath GAA confirms departure of Quaid as hurling manager
Westmeath GAA has confirmed that Joe Quaid has been relieved of his duties as the county's senior hurling manager.
Speculation about Quaid's future has been circulating in recent days and the county board released a statement last night to clarify the situation. And the former Limerick goalkeeper's tenure has ended after just one season in charge.
"Cumann Luthchleas Gael Iarmhí wish to confirm that we will not be renewing our association with Joe Quaid as Westmeath senior hurling manager for the forthcoming season," said the statement.
"We would like to thank Joe for his massive commitment to our team this year and acknowledge the progress we made in winning the NHL Division 2A title. Westmeath also enjoyed a wonderful Joe McDonagh Cup campaign, reaching the final where we lost to Laois. Earlier in the season Westmeath captured the Keogh Cup title."
"Cumann Luthchleas Gael Iarmhí would also like to acknowledge the contribution of Joe Quaid’s backroom team and thank them for their work during the year. We would like to take this opportunity to wish Joe Quaid and all his management the very best in the future," the statement added.
The abrupt departure of Quaid comes as a surprise given that Westmeath secured promotion from Division 2A of the Allianz Hurling League - a target that had proven elusive in previous years.
Having defeated Kerry in the Division 2A league decider, Westmeath went on to reach the Joe McDonagh Cup final in which they were decisively beaten by Laois. But that defeat was shown in a more positive light by Laois going on to claim a stunning win over Dublin, thereby qualifying for the All-Ireland quarter-finals.
The Lake County made their exit from the championship at the All-Ireland preliminary quarter-final stage with a heavy defeat to Cork, with the Rebels scoring a whopping tally of 1-40.
In the aftermath of that defeat, Quaid spoke of being "in year one of a three-year project" and he looked forward to the challenge facing Westmeath hurling in 2020.
Westmeath face a daunting campaign in Division 1 of next year's Allianz Hurling League, where they will compete in Group A along with All-Ireland champions Limerick, Galway, Tipperary, Cork and Waterford.