They said it ...

November 2004

It’s that time of the year again, well that time when the managerial merry go round is at its peak. Micko to Dublin, no Micko to Laois, Luke Dempsey heading for Carlow but then Longford come a calling. Even Meath had a wee bit of a race this year when long time supremo Sean Boylan struggled past the Eamon Barry challenge. And these comings to and fro happen at all levels, club and county. The Longford Leader reports on the shock resignation of the county minor team manager Declan O’Flaherty at the end of October.
The surprise resignation of the Longford GAA minor team manager, Declan O’Flaherty has cast a shadow over underage football in the county. O’Flaherty still has a year to run in his two year tenure but has apparently sent a letter of resignation to the Minor and Senior Co Boards. The Athlone based solicitor was much admired by players and would be regarded as one of the most innovative and professional coaches in the Midlands at the moment.
The Rathcline clubman first managed the county U16s to the Fr Manning Final, where they were defeated by Cavan in 2003. He took over the minor team earlier this year and all told, he managed the U16 and minor teams for a total of 15 competitive games - losing only three times.
O’Flaherty took the minors past the initial round-robin phase with wins over Carlow and Louth (after a replay) before narrowly losing to a Kildare side that were in turn unlucky to lose the Leinster final to Laois.
It was expected that O’Flaherty’s second year in charge of the minors would have been approved by the appointments committee last week. But when two of the six member committee refused to accept the will of the majority and sanction the re-appointment, committee chairman, John Greene disbanded the committee.
When O’Flaherty realised he did not have the full backing of the Minor Board, he immediately intimated to officials that he would be formally resigning.
Contacted by the Leader, O’Flaherty confirmed that he has resigned but was reluctant to comment on the matter “in the interest of Longford football.”
He did however, say that he had tended his resignation with much regret and it was his earnest wish that the minor panel of 2005 would go on to fulfill their obvious promise. He wished to make clear that he had no difficulty with members of the Senior Co Board and he also thanked minor secretary, Paddy Reilly for his help and support.
A Co Board official meanwhile has confirmed that a letter of resignation has indeed been received but would not confirm if it was critical of key Co Minor Board officials.
Apparently the resignation letter has cited a number of key factors for the resignation and these included the “personal animosity of certain Co Board officials’ and also the treatment of the minor team’s physio, Monica McKeon, by the Minor Board.
Perhaps most interesting however, are claims that the letter also contains a angry criticism of the Minor Board, for their failure to pay the medical expenses of one of the county’s most promising young footballers.

Down in Carlow rumours doing the round centred around John O’Mahony. He was in town and two and two becomes ... John Reilly in the Carlow Nationalist writes
Relative calm reigns in Carlow football this week after a turbulent month. With the players on the brink of strike on Friday, a compromise was reached and the county board agreed to settle some differences. The players had a full training session for the first time this season under Brendan Hayden and Willie Quinlan last night. They are holding further meetings with the board this week. John O’Mahony is in town tonight to give tips to coaches in Eire Og. The players have been led to believe that a meeting has been arranged between two county board officers, a member of the business consortium and O’Mahony.
“We had a good few chats with the county board and agreed on a few things, said Willie Quinlan, the players spokesman.
“We’re training tonight and I’ve rung a good few guys. The response has been good. The main thing to do is get training until someone comes in full time. They’re supposed to talk to John O’Mahony on Wednesday.”
O’Mahony has been linked with the job before, and was involved in long meetings with the supporters group but turned it down in favour of a year out of the game. This meeting appears to be a last-ditch attempt to change his mind.
However, business consortium spokesperson, John McDermott, felt the meeting was just out of courtesy.
“It is courtesy to meet them because he (O’Mahony) is in town,” he said.
“The county board wanted to see him and he is meeting them out of courtesy, there’s no significance in it. As far as I’m concerned, we’re still at square one, there’s been no movement.
“We’ve had no contact from the county board other than to say they’re meeting John O’Mahony. There is no other movement to get a manager that I know off.”
Interestingly, McDermott acknowledged the possibility of a contest in this year’s county board convention.
“There is talk of sending someone through - some clubs are actively seeking nominations, that much I do know. There has been no contest in a county board election for two years.”
Tempers frayed once again at a county board meeting last week.

But Sligo also have their eyes on the former Galway boss amongst a host of other contestants. Leo Gray of the Sligo Champion is as always well informed.
A number of new candidates have emerged in the race to succeed James Kearins as Sligo manager following a surprise decision by the County Board to defer the appointment.
Former Fermanagh manger, Dominic Corrigan, is still regarded as one of the front runners for the position and it understood that ex Tyrone joint boss, Eugene McKenna and former Offaly manger, Gerry Fahy are also very much in the frame.
But, following the deferral of the appointment which was widely expected to be confirmed at last night’s County Board meeting, a number of new names are under consideration.
Among those believed to have been added to the short list are three members of the Donegal team which won the All Ireland in 1992, Matt Gallagher, Donal Reid and Declan Bonner.
Gallagher has strong family connections with south Sligo while Reid’s family also has links with the county. Bonner, meanwhile, has inter-county managerial experience, having managed Donegal a few years ago.
Another Donegalman, Pauric McShea, and former Tyrone Under 21 manager, Sean O’Kane have also been linked with the vacancy.
The County Board had hoped to be in a position to name their new manager last night but were unable to finalise commitments from any of the leading candidates interviewed for the job.
Corrigan, who was believed to be the leading contender is manager of Tyrone champions Carrickmore, who are involved in Ulster Club Championship action this week-end. He is committed to the Tyrone club for another year but, even so, has not been definitely ruled out of the race for the Sligo job.
McKenna and Fahy are also high on Sligo’s list but should they be ruled out for one reason or another, some of the ‘dark horses’ could emerge as serious contenders.
While Sligo are anxious to make an appointment as soon as possible, they will not rush into a panic decision.
“We are determined to get the right man,” explained County Board Chairman, Mr Joe Queenan “and if that means taking longer than we expected then so be it.”
He said the County Board would call an emergency meeting if they were in a position to recommend a new manager in advance of their December monthly meeting. Otherwise, the matter would be finalised at the December meeting.
In the meanwhile, last year’s senior panel, together with a number of new players, will be called back in for training within the next two weeks, with or without a new manager in place.
It is understood that the County Board has reached agreement with a former high-profile inter-county manager to put a training programme together for the county panel which will be supervised by senior members of the squad.
Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that County Board Chairman, Mr Queenan, will be seeking re-election at the annual Convention which will be held in the Sligo Park Hotel on Monday, December 13th

John Connolly’s heading in the Leitrim Observer claims ‘Dolan will call it as he sees it’. Dolan the new Leitrim manager is, of course, Dessie senior, the father of the Westmeath star.
“I’ll call it as I see it.” Spend just ten minutes talking football to Dessie Dolan and you quickly get the impression that Leitrim’s new senior team manager is a man of strong views and passion that will call it exactly as he sees it.
Taking over what is perceived nationally as a hopeless cause, the Westmeath man presented medals to the victorious 2003 O’Donoghue Shield team in the Bush Hotel on Saturday night.
Speaking to The Observer, the passion Dolan has for the game came across quickly but not as quickly as his straight talking. “I know very little about Leitrim but I come without baggage, without any strings attached.
“I met a friend from Galway recently and as he held out his hand, he said ‘I don’t know whether to congratulate you or sympathise with you. Sure, there’s nothing in Leitrim only beautiful places.’ Wouldn’t it be lively to meet Galway in a Connacht final and beat them,” said the Leitrim boss.
“It is a very big challenge but Leitrim wouldn’t be all that far off what Westmeath were five or six years ago. Leitrim were always in much the same boat as Westmeath, it is all down to attitude,” maintained Dessie.
The new manager may soon have a name as a disciplinarian as Dolan will not tolerate anyone not as committed or dedicated as himself.
“I’ll call it as I see it. I have my own views on how things should be done and I won’t take any messing. I believe in an organised and disciplined approach and I expect players to follow my lead - there is no room for messers at county level.”
Dessie continued that theme as he addressed the members of 2003 minor team, urging them not to practice the skills but to perfectly practice the skills of the game.”If you are a forward and you shoot seven points out of ten in a training session, don’t be happy with that, aim for ten from ten. Don’t be satisfied with anything less than the best and it will carry over into your football.
“There is no difference I can see between you and young fellows from Westmeath or anywhere else,” he added.
Young players can expect to get their chance from the new senior manager. “I believe that Leitrim teams have been competitive at underage level and the future of any county lies with the young fellows.”
Calling it as he sees it, Dessie starts with his own appointment. “My appointment is for one year, with an option for a further two years if it goes well. It is a two way thing and a one year term, will give me a chance to see if I like it or if we make progress. If it goes well, it will be for three years.”

Offaly’s new man in the hot seat, Kevin Kilmurray, was probably the finest centre half forward of his day. His appointment should herald a period of stability to the county. Or will it? Words, Kevin Corrigan of the Offaly Express.
Offaly legend, Kevin Kilmurray will be the next Offaly senior football manager. The Daingean native was to be put forward for ratification at a meeting of the Offaly GAA County Board last night and it was expected that he would be appointed unanimously.
Kilmurray’s appointment will be warmly welcomed by supporters as he is one of the great names of Offaly football.
He was centre half forward on the Offaly team that won the All-Ireland senior football championship in 1971 and 1972 while he was still there for the start of the “second coming” under Eugene McGee and he won a fifth Leinster senior football medal in 1980.
Kilmurray has been linked with the Offaly job in the past but has received the nod on this occasion from a committee consisting of County Board Chairman and Secretary, Tommy Byrne and Christy Todd, and former Offaly footballers James Brady, Ken Kellaghan and Sean Lowry.
He enters the fray after a turbulent couple of years for Offaly football. Paul O’Kelly’s reign as manager was ended controversially by a review committee after nine months, while Galway man Gerry Fahy resigned after he won a County Board vote by just one vote, 27-26, to retain his position.
The players went on strike in the wake of Fahy’s departure and this was resolved after a lengthy mediation process by former Offaly manager Eugene Mcgee.
In a document drawn by up McGee and accepted by all parties, Kilmurray will now get a three year term and there will be no review until after the end of the second year, which will finally bring a period of much needed peace and stability to football on the county.
Kilmurray comes into the fray at a time when there will be big pressure on the players to perform. They will compete in Division 1 of the National Football League and have received a favourable championship draw with a first round clash with Louth.
He also comes into an Offaly panel that has a lot of talent, particularly in a forward line where James Coughlan, Thomas Deehan and Niall McNamee are all exciting prospects.
Defensively Offaly have a reasonably solid look but they do need to unearth a midfield general, with Jimmy Grennan entering the twilight of his intercounty career, although the Ferbane man still has a lot to offer if he opts to give it another year, which supporters will be hoping he does.
Gerry Fahy led Offaly to the National Football League Division 2 title this year but the championship campaign ended disappointedly with defeats by Westmeath and Wexford.
Kilmurray has been actively involved with the club scene in Dublin, where he lives, and he has helped transform the fortunes of St. Brigids GAA club.
St. Brigids won their first ever Dublin senior football championship last year and Kilmurray was the manager when they were beaten in the final a few years ago.
While living outside Offaly for a long number of years, he has always retained a huge interest in his native county and has been a familiar figure at county games.
Kilmurray also has the right to pick his own selectors and while they have not been announced yet, their identity will be awaited with interest.
He won All-Star awards in 1972 and 1973 and he was selected at centre half forward on the Offaly football team of the millennium in 2000.

We finish with a departure of a different note. Phelim Murphy has served Galway through thick and thin for decades, the last 23 years as secretary. Declan Tierney writing in the Connacht Tribune reflects back on the career of ‘Mister Tickets’
It was the end of a remarkable era last night when the widely known Galway Hurling Board Secretary, Phelim Murphy announced his retirement from the position after 23 years unbroken service.
He will have many memorable moments from his career - and among those which will stand out will be his house under virtual siege from fans as they made pleas to get All-Ireland tickets.
Mr Murphy called a meeting of the Hurling Board officers during the week and informed them of his decision which was made after two years consideration.
He served Galway hurling during the golden era when he was a selector to the teams which won All-Ireland titles in 1980 and then back to back in 1987 and 1988.
“I think it was time to call it a day. I have been a long time in the job and now it is time for someone else to take over and there are a lot of people out there who are very capable of doing that,” he told the Connacht Tribune.
Phelim had served as Chairman of Turloughmore Hurling Club for 23 years prior to taking up the position of secretary to the Galway Hurling Board.
During his time as an officer with Turlough’s he was to a large degree responsible for organising the annual carnivals which were major fundraisers for the local club.
It was when outgoing Hurling Board Secretary Fran Corcoran announced his retirement for the position that Murphy was encouraged to run for the job and he agreed to do so. There were two nominations - Murphy and Paul O’Donnell from Mullagh - with the Turloughmore man winning in a straight vote.
He served as Secretary with distinction and during his term of office he was challenged on two occasions - such was his popularity that he won both contests comfortably.
Phelim said that among the highlights of his term in office were the back-to-back titles won in 87 and 88 which he said were wonderful occasions to be involved in. Cyril Farrell was the manager when Galway won their three All-Irelands in the eighties with Phelim Murphy and Bernie O’Connor being his selectors.
“It is an awful shame that we haven’t won more All-Irelands since then but those were great teams and I was very proud to have been involved with them,” said Phelim.
He also served a three year term as President of the Connacht Council at the same time when Joe McDonagh was President of the GAA and he describes this as another highlight in his involvement with the association.
“The Connacht Council is mainly football orientated so it was a great honour for me to become its President. And it was great to sit beside Joe McDonagh in Croke Park on All-Ireland days with him as President and me as one of four vice-Presidents,” Murphy added.
He said that he been contemplating retiring for the past couple of years but people within the organisation in Galway had convinced him to stay on.
“This year I decided that it was time to go and that was that.”
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