Under the management of Páidí Ó Sé, the county team won the 2004 Leinster Senior Football Championship Final.

In 2005, the county won the first Christy Ring Cup and thereby gained promotion to the 2006 Liam MacCarthy 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.

[4] Mary Henry won the camogie All-Ireland Poc Fada Championship in 2006, the first Westmeath woman to win it.