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New Offaly Hurling Manger? Big name required now?

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Is it time now for Offaly to bite the bullet, and spend, and try at least to get some big name into manage our senior hurlers?.Absolutely no disrespect to Kevin Ryan or Eammon Kelly etc. or the counties these men managed previously, but managers comming from these counties are comming in with a lesser experience and success rate than what is required to competed at the top. Hard to know where to turn, the ship is currently on the rocks big time, and if the next appointment or two are incorrect that could be the end of Offaly hurling, having said that, the club scene at Senior level is very lobsided with only one competitive game in the Senior Championship at the weekend just gone, at least two of the games were won by nearly 20 and 30 points respectively, we appear to have teams Senior to beef up numbers at senior level and supposedly promote senior hurling but comming up from intermediate one year to be hammered in each game at Senior level is doing nothing for anyone, and I think there in lies some of the problem, players are being brought into the Senior panel who are simply not good enough, hopefully the county board will make the big phone calls this time to proven candidate to manage our Senior Hurlers and not state that they dont know who it is should be making such a call which happened when Davy Fitz went to Wexford..any ideas of names who would do a good job in Offaly?

Fairplayalways (Offaly) - Posts: 1034 - 18/07/2017 14:52:01    2018693

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Anthony Cunningham?

moros (Roscommon) - Posts: 1080 - 18/07/2017 15:00:18    2018698

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A removal of the county board and start with a complete new one with no baggage plus investment in underage teams is what's required.

Killarney.87 (Tipperary) - Posts: 2513 - 18/07/2017 15:57:00    2018748

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Replying To Killarney.87:  "A removal of the county board and start with a complete new one with no baggage plus investment in underage teams is what's required."
personally,i think offaly would be better off putting their resources into the underage game for 5 years,see if they can get anything to come through.
there is only so much a man can do.

perfect10 (Wexford) - Posts: 3929 - 18/07/2017 16:07:10    2018758

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I've always wondered did the 1980-1998 Offaly teams overachieve massively and distort the expectations ever since? Offaly won no Leinster or All-Ireland titles before 1980. Was their successful period just a fortunate time for the county with a clutch of good players coming through and their decline since then is really only Offaly finding their true level once again? No disrespect intended.

M Lyster (Antrim) - Posts: 461 - 18/07/2017 16:29:42    2018777

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A big name might help, but is there really enough talent to work with in Offaly anymore? Seem to have a couple of excellent players but a lot looked very average. Offaly have struggled badly and underage levels too over the last few years, often losing to Westmeath, Carlow and Laois sides.

The Real 1944 (Carlow) - Posts: 1114 - 18/07/2017 16:37:03    2018787

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Replying To perfect10:  "personally,i think offaly would be better off putting their resources into the underage game for 5 years,see if they can get anything to come through.
there is only so much a man can do."
Absolutely. There's far too much emphasis on the cult of the manager. If Brian Cody, Davy Fitz, Liam Sheedy, or any other big name manager you care to mention was appointed Offaly manager tomorrow it wouldn't make a difference because if the underage coaching and structures aren't there and there's no talent coming through, there's nothing any manager can do to improve results.

PoolSturgeon (Galway) - Posts: 1903 - 18/07/2017 18:39:39    2018852

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Replying To M Lyster:  "I've always wondered did the 1980-1998 Offaly teams overachieve massively and distort the expectations ever since? Offaly won no Leinster or All-Ireland titles before 1980. Was their successful period just a fortunate time for the county with a clutch of good players coming through and their decline since then is really only Offaly finding their true level once again? No disrespect intended."
as an Offaly person I often wondered that too..when Offaly were winning in the 1980's and 1990 Kilkenny were generally in decline at the time, and often Wexford (in the 1980's early years anyway) would beat Kilkenny only for Offaly to beat Wexford then)..Cork and possibly Limerick were the only other so called powers back then with half decent teams..Limerick would go ding dong with Cork each year, there were no Tipperary, Waterford, or Clare etc back then either..with no back door then if you won 2 matches or so you were Leinster champions...the same now I know but the back door and round robin etc. is there and I dont know if its doing anything at all...more games..more revenue for GAA..as regards who I think might get the job..Ide say Danny Owens will be the native selection and he would tick all the boxes politically as well...outsider maybe Cunningham...who would a fairly good choice..

Fairplayalways (Offaly) - Posts: 1034 - 18/07/2017 19:14:00    2018873

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the last 2 managers eamon kelly(who gave the excuse he hadnt time to manage anyone,and took the laois job the following week!) and kevin ryan couldnt wait to get out of there. remember the football set up is also in a mess.
saying getting in a "big name" manager would improve things is absurd. if you rolled alex ferguson brian cody liam sheedy mick o dwyer and kevin heffernan into one they wouldnt improve things. the talent isnt there.the county board are a shambles.they need to resign en masse and get in young forward thinking young people.
then concentrate on the under age structures.it took 17 years of gradual decline to get offaly to the low level they are at now(lets face it maybe christy ring isnt far away in 2018).all things going well it could take 17 years to get back to 2000 levels.
its prob true that the 80/85 team followed by the 3 in a row minors and the 94/2000 senior teams were freaky in terms of arrival.but the people of offaly wernt complaining.. lets hope sanity will prevail somehow.

kavvie (Clare) - Posts: 505 - 18/07/2017 19:46:37    2018893

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I find it strange the Offaly hurling club championship looks to be competitive and some good club sides who have done well over the years.
Is there a problem they can't get the best players in the county to commit to county panel?
They seem to be happy just beating the likes of Laois and Westmeath and see what happens after that basically keeping their head above water and ensure they play in a leinster semi final.
I remember last year Westmeath beat them and it looked like the game was thrown or they didn't try as finishing second pitted them against Laois rather than Galway.
It's really embarrassing for the county board they should step down and clubs should elect a whole new executive.

WildPundit (Tipperary) - Posts: 1709 - 18/07/2017 22:37:37    2018982

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Harry snuffaluffagus is a big name , not sure he knows much about GAA

Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 19/07/2017 09:12:07    2019076

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Replying To WildPundit:  "I find it strange the Offaly hurling club championship looks to be competitive and some good club sides who have done well over the years.
Is there a problem they can't get the best players in the county to commit to county panel?
They seem to be happy just beating the likes of Laois and Westmeath and see what happens after that basically keeping their head above water and ensure they play in a leinster semi final.
I remember last year Westmeath beat them and it looked like the game was thrown or they didn't try as finishing second pitted them against Laois rather than Galway.
It's really embarrassing for the county board they should step down and clubs should elect a whole new executive."
The club scene in offaly has never been as bad, which is a factor why the county is doing so bad...birr are a shadow of their former selves,a poor enough rynaghs team won offaly,any club that wins intermediate are out of their depth completely every year in senior,showing the gap. There is no hurling club in north offaly now where once was ballyfore,edenderry,croghan,raheens,so things are at an all time low..

preddan (Kildare) - Posts: 736 - 19/07/2017 10:22:32    2019113

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Why would a big name??

witnof (Dublin) - Posts: 1604 - 19/07/2017 10:54:43    2019140

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On a serious note you build from the ground up , Offaly juvenile teams are poorly managed , poorly equipped and no where near the standard of teams of equal stature , I've seen them come out to games from un13 to u17 and they are way out of their depth, will a big name change things at ground level ? investment is needed as well as a plan , and finally the will to see it through

Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 19/07/2017 10:55:40    2019142

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forget about your senior team and start worrying about getting the right people over the under 14 team.

hurlorhurley (Wexford) - Posts: 1660 - 19/07/2017 11:05:23    2019146

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This is the great mistake of many counties, the big name will sort it out, has it ever worked? Big name comes to a county with little or no talent and wins. Offaly would be far better off to start the process of identifying people who can take on their development squads and then fund that. I'd say the previous mangers expenses alone would have covered most of that cost

Barrowsider (Carlow) - Posts: 1593 - 19/07/2017 11:40:52    2019175

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Just like what we did in Wexford, Offaly need to start at rock bottom and work up. It will take a minimum of 10 years before they are even remotely competitive.
I know this because we had to take the toughest of medicine in Wexford, and got rid of the outsiders and focused all the efforts on underage. I know we are not there yet and this year was bad at U21 and minor, but we've had good success at that age group.
But you need your U12, U14 and U16 teams competing and from what I have heard, at most of these competitions, blitzes, etc, Offaly are not at the races.
I think nobody takes any pleasure in seeing where Offaly hurling is at, but there are no quick fixes. Hurling, ballwork, getting heroes involved, are the only answers.

Pinkie (Wexford) - Posts: 4100 - 19/07/2017 11:55:04    2019184

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Replying To Pinkie:  "Just like what we did in Wexford, Offaly need to start at rock bottom and work up. It will take a minimum of 10 years before they are even remotely competitive.
I know this because we had to take the toughest of medicine in Wexford, and got rid of the outsiders and focused all the efforts on underage. I know we are not there yet and this year was bad at U21 and minor, but we've had good success at that age group.
But you need your U12, U14 and U16 teams competing and from what I have heard, at most of these competitions, blitzes, etc, Offaly are not at the races.
I think nobody takes any pleasure in seeing where Offaly hurling is at, but there are no quick fixes. Hurling, ballwork, getting heroes involved, are the only answers."
Couldn't agree more , no one enjoys seeing a county on its knees and that's were Offaly are.

Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 19/07/2017 13:19:35    2019246

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Replying To Pinkie:  "Just like what we did in Wexford, Offaly need to start at rock bottom and work up. It will take a minimum of 10 years before they are even remotely competitive.
I know this because we had to take the toughest of medicine in Wexford, and got rid of the outsiders and focused all the efforts on underage. I know we are not there yet and this year was bad at U21 and minor, but we've had good success at that age group.
But you need your U12, U14 and U16 teams competing and from what I have heard, at most of these competitions, blitzes, etc, Offaly are not at the races.
I think nobody takes any pleasure in seeing where Offaly hurling is at, but there are no quick fixes. Hurling, ballwork, getting heroes involved, are the only answers."
thank you for a no nonsense and honest reply..theres a thing I notice too in Offaly in recent years when a good scoring forward comes along from underage, he often ends up being converted to a defender, I know this happens take Limerick for example with Kyle Hayes in the centre back this year for the U21's, I don't want to mention Offaly players by name as some are not with the county at the moment and I don't want to personalise it given the situation, but I believe if you can get a good scoring forward, coach and guide him to be one, just because he can play anywhere I wouldn't be sacrificing playing him in defence to keep scores down rather than utilize him upfront where you need scores, and often one good forward can be an encouragement to the lesser ones around them if they are supplying him with the ball etc...Ollie Canning would be another who was an outstanding forward but became a great defender (one of the best Galway ever had) and I know it can work both ways, but counties like Offaly need put round pegs in round holes etc..Seamus Hickey dabbled in forwards for Limerick for a season or two but is a mighty defender so keep him there..

Fairplayalways (Offaly) - Posts: 1034 - 19/07/2017 13:20:56    2019248

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Replying To perfect10:  "personally,i think offaly would be better off putting their resources into the underage game for 5 years,see if they can get anything to come through.
there is only so much a man can do."
That was pretty much my point too and what is normally the problem in a county that has fallen from grace.

With Offaly I think the county board are doing more harm than good and need to be removed.

Killarney.87 (Tipperary) - Posts: 2513 - 19/07/2017 18:53:46    2019495

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