O'Brien: 'I've been thrown under the bus'

BREAKING

Departing Westmeath senior hurling manager, Kevin O’Brien has rejected suggestions that he was struggling to get players to commit for the 2027 season.

Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner, he confirmed that he and his management team were working with a panel of 33 players for next year, 17 of whom have been tested. The remaining players are tied up with clubs who are involved in the Leinster club campaigns.

“Any suggestion that Westmeath is struggling to get a panel is unfair,” he insisted.

O’Brien, whose departure was confirmed by Westmeath GAA this afternoon, is bitterly disappointed that the current situation has come to pass and admitted he is hurting.

“I’m a Westmeath man and I have given my heart and soul to this. I have plans in place, Abbotstown (GAA Centre of Excellence) has been booked, I only want the best for hurling in the county. But I have been thrown under the bus here. People have set about undermining me at every turn and they have succeeded,” he said.

O’Brien was critical of social media platforms where he said untruths were written and spoken, all of which he feels has been part of a concerted effort to derail the county's senior hurling management team.

Westmeath GAA are facing something of a crisis following the latest development with the senior hurling side.

O’Brien was fully committed in his efforts to turn things around after a disappointing 2026 campaign. Coaches Adrian Clancy (Offaly), Shane Keegan (Laois), Eddie Brennan (Kilkenny), Niall Stack (Offaly) and Ollie Baker were all in place. Strength and Conditioning was to be led by Caoimhin O'Brien (Offaly), along with Rory Fleming (Kildare).

Brennan's recent announcement was seen as a positive move, but there was concern that no Westmeath selector was part of the senior management.

O'Brien, who led Clonkill to senior success in 2018 and ’19, previously managed the county's U20 hurlers, but has served just one year in charge of the Westmeath senior side, enduring difficult league and Joe McDonagh Cup campaigns.

Westmeath GAA has confirmed they will now begin the process of appointing a new senior hurling manager.

News of O’Brien’s departure also means that a new panel will now be put in place for the new seasons and players who had fallen out of favour with the former manager may now come back into the reckoning.

O’Brien was ratified at the recent Westmeath GAA County Committee meeting and since then, Eddie Brennan was added to the backroom team as a coach.

It’s not known whether Brennan would be interested in the now vacant manager’s position, but there are obvious challenges regarding a lack of training facilities in Westmeath. The new training centre (Centre of Excellence) will not be finished for several years and the county's senior hurlers regularly travelled to Abbotstown, Dublin to avail of the facilities there.

The statement from Westmeath GAA reads as follows:

"Westmeath GAA confirms that Kevin O’Brien’s tenure as senior hurling manager has come to a close.

"We thank Kevin for his commitment and contribution to Westmeath hurling and the senior hurling team in 2026 and wish him every success in the future.

"Westmeath GAA will now commence the search for a new senior hurling manager for 2027. Ends."

Westmeath defeated London in this year's Joe McDonagh Cup, but lost to Carlow, Laois, Antrim and Down. They had Division 2 league wins over London, Meath, Derry and Mayo.