Westmeath to meet Louth in 2014 Leinster football championship
By Kieran Galvin
Westmeath have been drawn against Louth in the opening round of the 2014 Leinster SFC.
The prize for the winners is a quarter-final meeting with Kildare.
New Westmeath manager Paul Bealin will be pleased to have avoided his native Dublin - his new charges are on the opposite side of the draw to the All-Ireland champions.
Westmeath have had several meetings with Louth in league and championship over recent years. Having suffered a number of defeats at Louth's hands, Westmeath managed to get the better of the Wee County men in the 2012 All-Ireland Qualifiers.
RTE pundit Kevin McStay - who guided St Brigid's of Roscommon to the 2013 All-Ireland club title - has been linked with the vacant Kildare job. When asked about the speculation about the Kildare post by RTE's Michael Lyster, McStay did not rule it out.
And the former Mayo star suggested that Kildare and Meath would be Dublin's closest challengers for the Leinster title next year.
Meanwhile, the Westmeath hurlers will meet Wexford if they can emerge as winners of their qualifier group within the Leinster SHC.
The Westmeath hurlers are grouped with Laois, Carlow, Antrim and London.
And if Brian Hanley's charges can claim second place in that group, they will meet Galway in the quarter-finals.
RTE analyst Cyril Farrell suggested that Laois will emerge as winners of the qualifier group, while he expected Antrim to be runners-up.
In the Connacht SFC, Roscommon will meet Leitrim and the winners will face provincial champions Mayo (defeated All-Ireland finalists for the past two years) or New York in the semi-finals.
Kevin McStay predicted improvement from Roscommon next year, but suggested that a Mayo v Galway Connacht final would be the most likely outcome.
Managed by John Evans, Roscommon will be strongly fancied to overcome Leitrim in their opening round.
In the Munster SFC, Kerry and Cork have been controversially seeded in the semi-finals - which has led to the other four counties threatening to boycott the 2015 Munster championship if this decision is not reversed.
GAA supporters have scarcely drawn their breaths after Clare's victory over Cork in last Saturday's hugely dramatic All-Ireland hurling final replay - but now the draws for next year's championships have already been made.
The draws were made at an event in Croke Park this evening (Thursday) and were broadcast live on RTE 2.
See below for details of all the draws.
2014 GAA Championship Draws
FOOTBALL
Leinster SFC
First round
Wicklow v Laois
Longford v Offaly
Westmeath v Louth
Quarter-finals
Wicklow/Laois v Dublin
Longford/Offaly v Wexford
Westmeath/Louth v Kildare
Carlow v Meath
Semi-finals
Wicklow/Laois/Dublin v Longford/Offaly/Wexford
Westmeath/Louth/Kildare v Carlow/Meath
Connacht SFC
Preliminary round
New York v Mayo
Quarter-finals
Roscommon v Leitrim
London v Galway
Semi-finals
London/Galway v Sligo
Roscommon/Leitrim v Mayo/New York
Ulster SFC
Preliminary round
Tyone v Down
Quarter-finals
Monaghan v Tyrone/Down
Armagh v Cavan
Fermanagh v Antrim
Derry v Donegal
Semi-finals
Fermanagh/Antrim v Derry/Donegal
Tyrone/Down/Monaghan v Armagh/Cavan
Munster SFC
Quarter-finals
Tipp v Limerick
Clare v Waterford
Semi-finals
Tipp/Limerick v Cork
Clare/Waterford v Kerry
HURLING
Leinster SHC
Qualifier Group: Westmeath, Laois, Antrim, Carlow and London.
Quarter-finals
A. Winners of qualifier group (Westmeath/Laois/Antrim/Carlow/London) v Wexford
B. Runners-up of qualifier group v Galway
C. Kilkenny v Offaly
Semi-finals
A v Dublin
B v C
Munster SHC
Quarter-final
Cork v Waterford
Semi-finals
Tipperary v Limerick
Clare v Cork/Waterford