Westmeath's All-Star goalkeeper Gary Connaughton has warmly welcomed Tomas O Flatharta's reappointment as manager. The Kerry native finally ended speculation about his future by committing to the Lake County for a fourth season on Wednesday, and Connaughton is already looking forward to building on last year's progress when the Lake County won Division 2 of the National League and pushed both Dublin and Tyrone to the wire in the championship. "It would have been a huge setback had he walked away," the Tubberclair clubman admitted. "It's possible a number of the older players may have taken a look at themselves before deciding whether they had the appetite to prove themselves all over to another manager. "Continuity is important when you're trying to make progress, that's been seen over the past number of seasons. There was talk among the players after the defeat to Tyrone about whether the management would stay on, but we always hoped Tomas would stay. "He had been linked with a number of positions, but we were confident he would remain after the work he put in. Tomas has been involved since 2004. "In his first year in charge in 2006, we reached the quarter-finals of the championship. Last year didn't go as well but good work was overseen and that stood to us last summer when we pushed both Dublin and Tyrone. "We're trying to bridge the gulf between us and the top teams. Had Tomas gone, we would have been cut further adrift but thankfully the chopping and the changing has been avoided." Meanwhile, Westmeath's long-serving defender Damien Healy recently set off on a year-long trip around the world which is expected to signal the end of his inter-county career. Tweet

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