Jason Ryan's men were well on their way to a second league win when leading 1-9 to 0-3 at half-time, with Cathal McNally scoring the game's only goal and Darroch Mulhall, Niall Kelly and Fergal Conway kicking some nice points.

Westmeath boss Paul Bealin said his young charges were 'naive at times' and their habit of playing in patches and not the full 70 minutes has hurt them during the league run. They were not helped today by three players having to go off with first half injuries.

The Lilywhites conceded an average of 22 points in their first six league games, but bottom side Westmeath never looked like reaching double figures.

Speaking to Midlands 103 afterwards, Bealin also revealed that his team 'gave the ball away 32 times' according to their stats and conceded that his players were 'not right mentally' for the game with their relegation already confirmed.

The former Dublin player is confident though that the Lakesiders will 'step up' and using 'the huge amount of learnings from the league' when they host Louth in next month's Leinster Championship opener in Mullingar.

It was a much-needed win for Kildare as their thoughts turn to their June 8 date at Croke Park with either Westmeath or Louth, but one player they will certainly miss this summer is one John Doyle.

The veteran forward confirmed after the game that he is retiring from inter-county football at the age of 37, citing family commitments as his reason for bowing out now.

The enduring Allenwood clubman, who was a Leinster Championship winner with Kildare in 2000 and an All-Star in 2010, released a statement via the Gaelic Players Association tonight.

"I wish to announce my retirement from county football today. I make this decision very reluctantly but do so based on my family commitments," explained Doyle.

"It has been a great privilege for me to have worn the Kildare jersey for the past 15 years and a wonderful honour to have soldiered with and against so many great players.

"This commitment has shaped me as a person and Kildare football has been an integral part of my life for as long as I can remember.

"However, I am confident that now is the right time to close this chapter and move on to an exciting period in my life.

"I would like to wish Jason Ryan, his management team and the current Kildare squad the very best of luck for the Championship season 2014 and indeed on into the future."

Doyle leaves the inter-county game with some incredible personal statistics - he made 67 consecutive Championships starts for Kildare over a 13-year period and scored in 50 consecutive Championship matches.