The Westmeath hurlers experienced a successful period in the mid-1930s, when they won the Leinster League twice in succession, the Junior Championship in 1936, and beat Laois to qualify for the 1937 Leinster Senior final.
Rickards town's John 'Jobber' McGrath, who played for the county in the 1950s and 1960s, is regarded as Westmeath's greatest hurler, and as one of the greatest players never to have won an All-Ireland senior hurling title.
Westmeath played in the first division of the National Hurling League in 1985–86 and were the only team to beat Galway in an 18-month period. This team included the three Kilcoyne brothers and produced an All-Star award for David, who was the team's free taker and top scorer in 1986. The first All Star award for any Westmeath player in hurling or football.
In 2005, the county won the first Christy Ring Cup and thereby gained promotion to the 2006 Liam McCarthy Championship. In 2006, they beat Dublin in the first round of the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship before losing the semi-final to Kilkenny in Mullingar by 14 points. They then lost to Waterford, Galway and, disappointingly, Laois before tamely losing a relegation playoff against Dublin on a scorching July day in Tullamore. Despite progress made in 2006, the GAA condemned the county's hurlers to the Christy Ring Cup - this time without the prospect of promotion. Further rule changes and a Christy Ring win in 2010 allowed Westmeath back into the 2011 Liam McCarthy.
Further progress came on 20 April 2008 with victory in the NHL (Division 2), winning the final against Carlow. That day also saw their footballing counterparts move into Division 1 of the NFL also, with a win over Dublin.
In 2015, the Westmeath minor hurlers surprised heavy favorites Wexford by two points in the Leinster quarter-final, the win has been regarded by the manager as the 'biggest result in history of Westmeath hurling'.[3] The senior hurlers beat Carlow by two points in the Leinster Qualifier group and extended their winning run beating favorites, Antrim 1–21 to 0–7.
Westmeath achieved a famous victory over near rivals Offaly in May 2016 during the Leinster Championship. Westmeath led by some distance for the entire game before winning 2–21 to 1–10.
In September 2019, Westmeath announced Shane O'Brien as new manager after Joe Quaid's departure.[4][5]
Parts of this article (those related to this section) need to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (May 2020)
Team as per Westmeath vs Antrim in the Joe McDonagh Cup SHC, 2 June 2018
INJ Player has had an injury which has affected recent involvement with the county team. RET Player has since retired from the county team. WD Player has since withdrawn from the county team due to a non-injury issue.
^"Glennon to make Westmeath switch". Irish Independent. 12 October 2020. Former Galway coach Noel Larkin, who played a big part in their All-Ireland success three years ago, has also joined a stellar backroom team which also includes former Westmeath star Brendan Murtagh. Larkin will team up with another former Galway hurler in the shape of Alan Kerins while former Westmeath footballer Alan Mangan has also been drafted in as part of the coaching team.
