Legendary Westmeath GAA figure Dessie Dolan has stepped away as his native county’s senior football manager after completing a two-year stint. A popular figure with fans and players, it was expected that he would stay with the maroons for another year following last year’s promotion to Div 2 of the Allianz league. Although the county lost surprisingly to Wicklow in this year’s Leinster championship a week after winning a league title, they showed up well thereafter, indicating they were not that far off the big counties like Galway and Armagh, the current champions, as well as Tyrone last year when an unfortunate missed free prevented them from qualifying ahead of the Red Hand county to the latter series of the Sam Maguire.
Meanwhile in Kildare where there was huge disappointment at the paucity of success under the much-heralded Glenn Ryan reign, culminating in this year’s loss to Laois in the Tailteann Cup, the county board has turned to Brian Flanagan on a four-year contract.
Flanagan guided the county U-20s to consecutive Leinster titles in 2022 and 2023, as well as an All-Ireland title in 2023.
He was at the helm in Summerhill who won a first Meath SF title in 10 years last season.
With hurling Davy Fitzgerald stepping down after two years in Waterford, it was thought he might be tempted to take either the Galway or Dublin job with both Henry Shefflin and Micheál Donoghue calling time on their respective stewardships.
But he’s never been afraid of long journeys and he may well see the Saffrons as untapped territory where his inspirational style of management can have immediate effect among the Glens.
Fitzgerald led both Wexford and Waterford to provincial titles while in charge previously but with Antrim operating out of Leinster in the championship, his aim will be to invigorate the hurling parts of the county and build on the good work undertaken by Tipp man Darren Gleeson over the past five years.
Micheál Donoghue has stepped down as the Dublin hurling manager after two years in charge in the capital. Donoghue, who guided his native Galway to their only All-Ireland this century in 2017, took over in late 2022 on a three-year term, but elected not to take up the last season of his agreement.
“I have informed the Dublin County Board that I am stepping down as Dublin Senior Hurling Manager,” he declared in a statement from Dublin GAA.
“I would like to thank the panel and backroom team for their tireless work over the past two years.”
In his two years in charge Dublin qualified for the All-Ireland hurling championships, finishing third in the Leinster round-robin last year, and reaching the Leinster final this year where they were hammered by a rampant Kilkenny side.
Davy Fitzgerald’s successor as Waterford hurling coach will be Peter Queally who will have former local All-Star Dan Shanahan and Tipp’s Eoin Kelly in his backroom team.
Queally knows exactly what he is letting himself in for as he served as a selector for two years under Fitzgerald, along with Kelly. A former Waterford Under 21 manager, Queally has been charge of Limerick side Kilmallock this year. He becomes the first native of the county to take over the Deise since Páraic Fanning five years ago.
Former Cavan Ulster-winning manager Mickey Graham is moving county and province as he is set to become Leitrim manager on a three-year contract in succession to Mayo’s Andy Moran. He was part of the Leitrim backroom team in the season just gone as the county secured promotion to Division 3.
The Cavan native burst onto the management scene when leading the tiny north Longford club Mullinalaghta to a Leinster club title in 2018, where they shocked the mighty Kilmacud Crokes in the decider. Subsequently he was appointed Cavan manager and led them to a famous Ulster title four years ago - their first in 23 years.
