Dolan and Boyle back to boost Westmeath

DESSIE Dolan was expected to return to training with the Westmeath senior footballers last night (Tuesday) - as the Lake County's Leinster championship preparations gather pace. There has been some doubt in recent months about whether Dolan, 32, a key figure for Westmeath over the past decade, would continue to play inter-county football, following a long and productive Westmeath career to date, and also a hectic spell at club level with Garrycastle. However, despite neither Dessie or manager Pat Flanagan being available to comment on the issue yesterday, a source close to the Westmeath camp told the Westmeath Independent that Dolan's return to the camp "is more likely than not". The spokesperson also suggested Dolan's imminent return to training was likely to happen last night (Tuesday). Dolan's return to the set-up would represent a significant boost to Pat Flanagan's panel ahead of the Leinster SFC opener against Louth on May 20. Dolan played no part in Westmeath's recent league campaign, and the same applied to Garrycastle team-mates John Gaffey and Doron Harte, who have also since rejoined the panel. Fellow Garrycastle players, James Dolan and Mark McCallon were part of the panel for the final league game against Derry, with Dolan scoring an important goal after being introduced from the bench, as Pat Flanagan's men defied their critics to maintain Division 2 status. The Garrycastle contingent couldn't feature for almost all of Westmeath's league campaign due to their heroic run to the All-Ireland club final. Meanwhile, Killucan's Francis Boyle has rejoined the Westmeath panel. Boyle missed out on Westmeath's league campaign after deciding to commit to the county hurling team over recent months. But he returned to training with the footballers last week and is set to be included in the panel in the build-up to the championship. There's also some speculation that Paul Greville could also return to the picture in the near future. There is growing concern, though, about the fitness of Kieran Gavin, who sustained a quad muscle injury in the league game against Monaghan. Gavin missed the subsequent league games against Kildare and Derry match, and then Mullingar Shamrocks' opening Westmeath SFC outing, a defeat to St Loman's, last Sunday week. And Gavin's club team-mate Darragh Daly, who has been suffering from injury of late, is also likely to miss the Leinster Championship opener. Westmeath's championship preparations gather pace when they face Meath in a challenge match at Boardsmill, near Trim, next Monday (4pm).