Luke Dempsey believes Dublin would be foolish to take Westmeath for granted in Sunday's Leinster SFC semi-final. The Mullingar-based Carlow manager, who guided the Lake County to All-Ireland minor and under 21 titles in 1995 and '99, points out that Westmeath have the big match experience to beats the Dubs, and feels their far from impressive extra-time victory over Wicklow will have no bearing come Sunday. "Going by the mentality and the psyche of a county player, there's a big difference between playing Wicklow on a damp day in Tullamore, and playing Dublin in the huge confines of Croke Park.," he said. "You'll find on Sunday that for every three attacks that Dublin make, Westmeath will be a lot more economical with theirs. If Dublin keep missing chances, Westmeath are always going to hang in there - if they're economical with their chances. That's what you would hope. "Now if, on the other hand, Dublin convert their chances a little bit better than they did against Meath, then it could be a dangerous situation for Westmeath. It all depends on which Westmeath turns up and which Dublin turns up on the day. "I just feel that the Westmeath performance will be upped greatly. A lot of their 'boutique' players are back - they came on in the latter stages of the match against Wicklow, and those players have no fear of Dublin." Dempsey dismisses the suggestion that this will be a last hurrah for a Westmeath team that has brought unprecedented senior success to the county since the turn of the millennium. "Each of those individuals, if you're a manager, you couldn't ask for a better person in terms of their commitment and dedication to the cause," added the schoolteacher, who has managed many of the current team. "As long as they stay in peak form, their goal every year will be to win a Leinster title. "In 2004 they won it, and they've given the same commitment ever since. Really, it's up to them to decide." He added: "Damien Healy was on a world trip and he's cancelled part of it because he's committed now for the rest of the summer. That's the sort of lads they are. "Some of them are battling with injuries and others with some form, but they're still mad to achieve. And I'm sure, if they don't achieve it this year, they'll still be back next year and until they run out of fuel, more or less." Tweet

Most Read Stories