Conway wary of "Micko factor" ahead of Leinster quarter final meeting

WESTMEATH selector Paul Conway feels the Mick O"Dwyer-factor will have a major impact on Sunday"s clash between Westmeath and Wicklow. The legendary O"Dwyer, who turned 73 on Tuesday, has won a total of twelve All-Ireland titles (as both player and manager), during a success laden career in Gaelic football. The Kerry native has also memorably led Kildare to a couple of Leinster titles and also guided Laois to provincial glory in 2003. O"Dwyer was rightly inducted in the GAA Hall of Fame in 2004 and remains a major force to be reckoned with on the touchline. This weekend, of course, O"Dwyer comes face to face with fellow Kerry native Tomás Ó Flatharta, the current manager of Westmeath. And Tang"s Paul Conway says Westmeath are full of respect for O"Dwyer"s accomplishments and pedigree, and must be ready for a major battle against his side at O"Connor Park, Tullamore, on Sunday (2pm). 'Mick O"Dwyer is without doubt one of the best managers in the country and you can"t have anything but the ultimate respect for what he"s achieved in his career both as a player and, of course, as a great manager. We are fully aware and respectful of the impact Mick O"Dwyer has on the Wicklow team,' Conway said. 'He has this Wicklow team in good condition at the moment and they look very fit and raring to go. Unlike us, they have no real injury concerns either. Wicklow have three or four very impressive forwards and a couple of big, strong midfielders. They"re not too bad in defence either. Wicklow have a competitive championship game under their belt as well, so that"s an important issue at this stage of the championship. It"s going to be a very hard game in Tullamore, but we"ll give everything we have to overcome Wicklow,' added the 2004 Leinster title winner. At time of going to print, Conway was wary of delving too much into the possible Westmeath team to face Wicklow, saying the management were due to discuss team selection in depth after yesterday (Tuesday) evening"s training session. The team will also have a light training session on Thursday evening when the team is expected to be made public. Definitely ruled out of Sunday"s game is Athlone forward Dermot Bannon, who recently suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury and is set to be out of action for up to two months. Westmeath are also sweating over the fitness of key duo Dessie Dolan and Michael Ennis, while experienced duo David O"Shaughnessy and Damien Healy are thought likely to start the game on the bench. Martin Flanagan looks likely to partner Shandonagh"s David Duffy at midfield, while Fergal Wilson, who himself has had difficulties with injury this year, will probably be selected to start in attack. The Lake County are expected to again have a strong defence with seasoned campaigners like goalkeeper Gary Connaughton, captain John Keane, Castledaly"s Derek Heavin and Donal O"Donoghue forming part of a potentially formidable rearguard. Whether Garrycastle"s Doran Harte figures in defence or the forward line possibly rests on the availability of Michael Ennis, who has been suffering with an Achilles tendon problem of late. Conway said: 'I suppose that"s probably fair enough to say. However, we"ll give any injured players as much time as possible to make the game and Michael Ennis falls into that category. I think it will go right down to the wire with Michael. We"ve been hit hard by injuries this year. It"s hard to put your finger on it, but it seems every second player has a knock of some variety. It"s a bit frustrating but all part of the game.' In attack, meanwhile, the onus for getting valuable scores will fall primarily at the quicksilver feet of Denis Glennon. Some weeks ago, there had been some doubt about Glennon"s involvement in the panel for the championship campaign when the Tyrrellspass hitman withdrew from the set-up for reasons which were never made public. However, Glennon"s decision to depart the panel didn"t last long and he was quickly back in the side and notching scores in challenge matches against Mayo and Wexford. Glennon will become even more integral to Westmeath"s hopes if fellow scoring sensation Dessie Dolan fails to recover from his knee injury in time for Sunday. Athlone"s John Connellan will also be hoping for a starting role in the forward line after featuring in Westmeath"s recent challenge matches, while club-mate Alan Gaughan could also play some part.