Cavan County Manager Jack Keyes has been a lifelong supporter of the GAA, having played and followed Gaelic games since his youth. Here, the Athy native talks about his love for Kildare football, his admiration for Offaly hurling and his eagerness to see his adopted county win silverware. Having spent many a Sunday afternoon during his youth in and around the Kildare football team dressing room, it's no surprise to hear that Jack Keyes is an avid GAA fan. "My uncle, Jim Mackey, used to manage the Kildare team and he brought me into the dressing room many times when I was a young lad. Football was a big part of my life when I was growing up and my family has a long association with Kildare GAA," the affable Cavan County Manager explains. Jack, who usually played at full back, won a Leinster Colleges 'B' medal with Athy CBS and played with the Athy club until about the age of 21 when he took up rugby and soccer. He was a particularly good rugby player with his performances for Athy and later Monkstown leading to his selection on the Leinster junior side in the 1970s. When his playing career ended, he coached Monkstown for a number of years. Jack's working career first took him to Dublin, then to Offaly and finally to Cavan. After studying engineering in UCD, he worked in the private sector for 10 years before joining Dublin Corporation in 1986. He became Offaly County Council's Director of Services for Planning and Community in 1999 and served five years in that and other posts in Corporate Affairs, Housing & Cultural Affairs before his appointment as Cavan County Manager in 2004. "I saw it (becoming County Manager) as a unique opportunity and I have enjoyed the challenge it has provided me with over the past four years. It's like sport in that it's a team effort. We're all part of the same team in Cavan Local Authorities and we strive to continually improve." During his time in Offaly, Jack became a keen supporter of the county's hurling team who he cheered to victory in the 1994 and '98 All-Ireland finals. He believes Offaly are a great example to other small counties aspiring for success on the national stage. "Offaly is an amazing county in that it has produced so many successful football and hurling teams over the past 30 or 40 years, despite having a small population and having had no real history of winning before that," he says. "They've shown what can be achieved with organisation and determination. They won four All-Ireland titles in the 1980s and 1990s which was a remarkable achievement for a county that never won anything in hurling before 1980." One of the first things that struck Jack when he came to Cavan was the locals' incredible interest in Gaelic football. "If anything, they are even more passionate about their GAA in Cavan than they are in other counties. I've discovered that football is a religion in Cavan. Everywhere you go, people are talking about it. "What makes Cavan different from most other counties is that football is the number one sport by a long distance. The other sports are all playing second fiddle to football." With five Sam Maguire Cup triumphs to their credit and a long list of provincial title wins, Cavan remains the most successful GAA county in Ulster. But sadly, most of the successes were achieved over half a century ago and, the 1997 Ulster championship win apart, Breffni County supporters have had very little to cheer about in recent years. "I'd love to see Cavan win something major in the next couple of years. The supporters have been starved of success for a long time now and they deserve a bit of good fortune at this stage. The implementation of the strategic plan over the next decade with a particular focus on youth and excellence is a necessity. I know Donal Keoghan and his players are putting in a huge effort to bring success to the county and hopefully everything will go well for them in the coming championship," adds Jack, who has four grown up children - John, Helen, Christina and Grainne. Jack and his staff are responsible for the day-to-day management and administration of Cavan County Council. There are five Directors of Services working under Jack and they are: Seamus Neely - Director of Planning and Infrastructure; Des Maguire - Director of Finance; Ger Finn - Director of Housing and Corporate Services; Joe McLoughlin - Director of Community and Enterprise; Frank Gibbons - Director of Environment and Water Services. And like Jack, they are all keen GAA supporters. Cavan County Council is responsible for the delivery of a wide range of services, including the provision of infrastructure and activities necessary to the physical, economic, social and cultural life of the county which involves the development of industry, business and social, arts and cultural affairs in the county. Its plays a key leadership role in local development and input into National Policy formulation. The Council performs both a representational and operational role in accordance with the Irish system of Local Government, which encompasses both democratic representation and public administration. Cavan County Council elected members are responsible for carrying out all reserved functions and the County Manager is responsible for all executive functions. The executive functions include: letting of houses; granting or refusal of planning permissions; appointment and management of staff; administration of the Council's affairs. "In reality, I work in collaboration with the Councillors whose input I greatly admire," he concludes. Jack and his staff are committed to providing the best services possible to the people of Cavan. At present, the Council is preparing a five-year development plan for the county. Included in it are plans to extend the new M3 motorway from Kells to Cavan, accelerate upgrade work on the N54 and N55 routes, and improvements in the areas of housing, tourism, planning, water services and the environment. The Council has been delighted with the success of its 'Pride of Place' anti-litter league and is extremely proud of the fact that Cavan Town is now regarded as one of Ireland's cleanest and tidiest towns. Cavan County Council is also keen to develop new sporting and leisure facilities, and Jack intends bringing the main sporting bodies in the county together shortly to discuss the possibility of creating a new municipal sports complex. He concludes by saying: "Sport has such an important role to play in society, especially with the health issues we are now facing. The GAA is the cornerstone of the rural community and it can continue to play a big part in getting young people active. By working in partnership with the main sporting organisations in Cavan, we hope to further increase participation and involvement in the next few years." Tweet

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