Richie Steps Down

[red exile]

one is definitely from shamrocks. i wud say you know who and the other could be any one of five of the most senior players,that said , richie was treated very unfairly by the panel who chose the media and the county board before a proper meeting with him, and i believe he is only very partially to blame having to field understrength teams in the o byrne cup with players playing out of position ,ect. although he has resigned and has his own personal difficulties he was a hero in the 80's and will always be a legend of the faithful who would do everything in his power to represent his county with pride. good luck to him

[Lone Shark]

richie was treated very unfairly by the panel who chose the media and the county board before a proper meeting with him

Stick to the facts here. I can tell you for certain that none of the panel were willing to speak with, or spoke with, any member of the media during the past week. Every journalist in the county will tell you that it was very difficult to write about what was going on because they simply didn't have that side of the argument. Pat Teehan spoke to the press, Richie spoke to the press but none of the players did. They never even released a public statement.

[TheManFromFerbane]

Is it true to say one of their problems was that they hadn't got their full allocation of gear yet?

[Lone Shark]

That wasn't one I had heard, however it may have been the case. However I thought that this happened pretty much every year - surely something like that would hardly be worth a strike? Even if it was, the manager could hardly be the scapegoat.

My understanding was that this was very much about "football" issues, however I couldn't say that with any great degree of conviction.

[Coolestown1562]

Havent much to say on the matter, as the latest fiasco is just indictive of the GAA in Offaly in general. We had a successful spell at football 1971-82 and Hurling 1981-98 and most GAA people in the county are happy to rest on those laurels and assume that we are at the upper echelons of the GAA fraternity. We are the laughing stock of the country since 2003 and even more so now.

It was clear (and I stated it on this site) that the wrong man was appointed as manager back in October; even more so the two selectors were perhaps two of the poorest choices any selection team ever had. However it is a disgrace that they were treated in such a manner.

We can take it that Brian Connor, Alan Mulhall, Gary Comerford and William Mulhall all backed the management. So is it fair to say that the rest were adamant about their removal? Player power is increasingly becoming more prevalent in the GAA today and has even filtered through to club level in the county.

I think if the players that wanted Richie's removal are men at all they should issue a statement to such and put their names to it.

There is alot of talk about Stephen Darby taking over the reins. Stephen Darby would know better than to become involved with a group of players such as this

[Archangel]

The players have dug a hole for themselves on this one. They might have succeeded in removing the manager, but they now have to prove they are worthy of wearing the jersey.
Let's see if there is any passion or commitment left in the senior panel or are they to be exposed as a bunch of prima-donna, under-achieving shapers. Time to put up or shut up.

[Kevin]

I know its been highlighted prior, but this comment from Richie seems to sum up the general feeling pretty well.

'I wish the players and whoever takes over every success in the future and hope that they have at least as much enjoyment and success as I had wearing the Faithful jersey.'

Zing!

[Bord na Mona man]

We really need to see something from the players now.
There has to be a few performances of guts and pride to show that this was all worthwhile.

I remember when Offaly took the field in 1998 against Clare on Day 1 after the Babs Keating sacking you could see how fired up the players were to prove a point. I remember well Sid exiting the tunnel, turning around and pumping his fist to urge on the the rest of colleagues. You knew straight away that Offaly were going Clare hell and not tamely exit the championship as the pundits had suggested.

Like the parade ring in horse racing, you can often tell from the body language on entering the field and the warm up how focussed a team is. It has been a while since an Offaly football team took the field where you felt there was an ambush about to take place.

I hope we see some sort of indication of fire in the bellies of the players in the next couple of months. I don't expect miracles overnight and results might be hard to come by, but supporters can tell and if there is genuine graft and effort on the field.

[Bord na Mona man]

http://www.offalyexpress.ie/news/Richie ... 4958852.jp
Richie Connor steps down as Offaly Football Manager

Published Date: 08 February 2009
RICHIE Connor has stepped down as the manager of the Offaly Senior Football team. The 1982 All Ireland winning captain announced his decision this afternoon.
After the end of a week that saw a number of meeting taking place to try and resolve the situation where a number of players had left the panel, the Walsh Island clubman said that he took the action 'in the best interest of Offaly football'.

County Board Chairman Pat Teehan said he deeply regretted Richie Connor's decision but 'very much respected it'.

Richie Connor's Statement
"I tendered my resignation as Offaly Senior Football manager to Pat Teehan Chairman of Offaly County Board this afternoon.

"While I regret this course of action I feel it is in the best interest of Offaly football. I considered my position earlier in the week when 9 players contacted the County Chairman withdrawing from the panel on Monday last.

"However, as 3 of those players were not on the official panel of 30, only two of the players lined out against Roscommon, two more appeared as subs, while the other two were not part of the 24 man league panel for Sunday last, I felt that I could continue to progress Offaly football without these players.

"Two of the more influential players of this group had a history of leaving county panels in the past. On Tuesday a team player and a fringe panel player also contacted the County Chairman withdrawing.

"The team player had no issue with the team Management but felt he could not afford the time away from his business if there was not a full commitment from all players. I then decided I would not make up my mind until I knew what the players' grievances were.

"I called a meeting for Tuesday evening when all but one of the aggrieved players failed to turn up and this player had very few concerns all of which could be addressed.

"His main grievance was that he felt he was overlooked for a first team position the previous Sunday. Therefore I was still not in a position to assess the situation in full

"On Wednesday I met the County Chairman and we agreed that the Chairman should meet the players to discuss their grievances given that the players had made the unusual step of contacting the Chairman in the first instance.

"This meeting was arranged for Saturday afternoon and 24 players attended. However, it transpired that 22 players had a meeting of their own the previous evening.

"At their meeting with the Chairman following his address to them they failed to engage with him other than to say they had not confidence in the management team and 20 of the 24 players walked out of the meeting.

"Despite this a number of players subsequently distanced themselves from this action and at least 19 players had committed to train in Walsh Island on Sunday morning. This was cancelled due to snow.

"I and my Team management have now decided that in order to avoid conflict among the footballers themselves we will step aside. I would sincerely hope that if players have a grievance in the future they would afford the manager the courtesy of bringing it to his attention, before putting it in the public domain.

"I wish to thank all of my backroom staff and I am grateful for the full support of selectors Ollie Daly and Mark Plunkett. I also wish to thank Physical Trainer Jimmy Dunne, Conditioning Specialist Sean Sweeney, Chartered Physiotherapist Michelle Crowley, Doctor Michael Haverty, Team Liaison Officer Eamonn Cusack, Kit men Paul Corrigan and Declan Kelly and anyone else who has assisted me during my five week tenure.

"I especially wish to thank the county board Chairman Pat Teehan for his help and support. I wish the players and whoever takes over every success in the future and hope that they have at least as much enjoyment and success as I had wearing the Faithful jersey."

County Board Chairman Pat Teehan's statement
Offaly County Chairman Pat Teehan stated this afternoon that he deeply regretted Richie Connor's decision but very much respected it

He went on to say that while he always respected and indeed expected players to air any grievances they had he was greatly disappointed that they did not at least give Richie Connor or County Board Officials the courtesy of discussing these grievances with them.

He paid tribute to the contribution Richie Connor had made to Offaly football as a player, particularly in Captaining Offaly to that memorable All-Ireland success over Kerry in 1982 and in stating that Richie Connor owed Offaly football nothing he regretted that he had not been afforded a reasonable opportunity to give back some of his vast experience towards managing the Offaly Senior Football team.

He also thanked selectors Ollie Daly and Mark Plunkett and all the backroom staff for their commitment to Offaly Football.

Finally he said while this is a very disappointing day for Offaly Football we must now try to move forward and retrieve the situation as best we can in the best interest of Offaly GAA. In this regard Offaly County Committee will hold a meeting tomorrow night to decide on the procedure for finding a successor to Richie.

[Bord na Mona man]

However, as 3 of those players were not on the official panel of 30, only two of the players lined out against Roscommon, two more appeared as subs, while the other two were not part of the 24 man league panel for Sunday last, I felt that I could continue to progress Offaly football without these players.

That fairly narrows it down!

[TheManFromFerbane]

"I wish to thank all of my backroom staff and I am grateful for the full support of selectors Ollie Daly and Mark Plunkett. I also wish to thank Physical Trainer Jimmy Dunne, Conditioning Specialist Sean Sweeney, Chartered Physiotherapist Michelle Crowley, Doctor Michael Haverty, Team Liaison Officer Eamonn Cusack, Kit men Paul Corrigan and Declan Kelly and anyone else who has assisted me during my five week tenure.

Almost as if to say, I had everything in place and the structure was sound. He's playing the media quite well to be fair.

[Lone Shark]

"I wish to thank all of my backroom staff and I am grateful for the full support of selectors Ollie Daly and Mark Plunkett. I also wish to thank Physical Trainer Jimmy Dunne, Conditioning Specialist Sean Sweeney, Chartered Physiotherapist Michelle Crowley, Doctor Michael Haverty, Team Liaison Officer Eamonn Cusack, Kit men Paul Corrigan and Declan Kelly and anyone else who has assisted me during my five week tenure.

Almost as if to say, I had everything in place and the structure was sound. He's playing the media quite well to be fair.

In terms of PR, there's no question who won the battle. In fact the players handled it so badly that Connor probably would have been well within his rights to stay on, making it all the more commendable that he didn't.

[Bord na Mona man]

I think the players probably had less definable big gripes this time around.
Catalogue what each player's problems are and you get a might get a list of 100 small things that when accumulated cause the issue, but taken in isolation look petty.

[GreatDayForTheParish]

An Emergency County Board meeting has been arranged for tonight. Does anybody have any idea what will happen or what is the established protocol for situations such as these? Could an interim management be appointed this quickly or will the County Board Chairman (Pat Teehan) have to step in for a few days?

[black and red exile]

It will be very interesting to see who takes training this week with the players and more importantly who picks the team for next Sunday. I would imagine when the County board meet tonight they would have to set up a commitee to interview people[if they can find any]which will take a week or two meaning that it will more than likely be the Louth game on 8th march before we have our new boss in place, but in the meantime someone will have to come in and temporarily take charge for the next six days, I WONDER WHO?