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From this years club championship so far what new players can we expect to be involved with Offaly next year

Is this McDonnell 'appointment' a late April fools joke or some sort of strange smoke screen while a proper manager is sorted out? Seriously.
He was in the paper saying that some of the training his school team did was "probably on a par with senior county level". Is he taking the piss or is out of his mind. Look at the training that Kildare have done for 5 years and they are still way off the pace and we now now have a chap who thinks that the bit of training he did with the young lads in the school will "probably" do for county level. He has brought his brother on board as well as a 'coach'. He also takes over the u21's and Pascal has been well and truly shafted. When is this 'appointment' being ratified? Is there any hope the clubs would step in and stop what appears to me and anyone I've spoken with to be madness.
If this goes ahead then I think we are in for a calamitous year.....I'd expect some players won't line out, a potential strike and a defeat to London in the league.

bracknaghboy wrote:Is this McDonnell 'appointment' a late April fools joke or some sort of strange smoke screen while a proper manager is sorted out? Seriously.
He was in the paper saying that some of the training his school team did was "probably on a par with senior county level". Is he taking the piss or is out of his mind. Look at the training that Kildare have done for 5 years and they are still way off the pace and we now now have a chap who thinks that the bit of training he did with the young lads in the school will "probably" do for county level. He has brought his brother on board as well as a 'coach'. He also takes over the u21's and Pascal has been well and truly shafted. When is this 'appointment' being ratified? Is there any hope the clubs would step in and stop what appears to me and anyone I've spoken with to be madness.
If this goes ahead then I think we are in for a calamitous year.....I'd expect some players won't line out, a potential strike and a defeat to London in the league.

Brilliant! not even ratified yet and all-ready the oul lags are jumping on his back, now i know how Fr. Heaney felt when he was defending Eugene Magee back in the day from the back in my day crowd

Good thing he had a strong character otherwise '82 would never have happened

I think it was Kevin Egan who once penned the line, "the Mantra of the county board these days are less off the Faithful county and more if in doubt get him out"

Seems to be the same with some of the old timers fans as well

As far as Kildare is concerned i think this year has proven that there is a difference between a team of Athletes and a team of good footballers

Their game with Meath being a case in point

The trick is to strike a balance and not sacrifice one over the other

In the games i have seen St Mary's play (on tv at least) they had some very good footballers as well as a good fitness level

This guy is young (in coaching terms) and he will bring a lot of fresh new ideas to the table if he is given a chance

FFS, lets give Emmet McDonnell a chance first and see how he gets on.
He'll have a tricky balancing act, but there is huge potential for improvement.
We aren't even playing the same sport as some of the elite teams. Something has to be done...or tried at least.

McDonnell will need to steer the ship carefully from the off. There is a subset of the panel who pull the emergency cord as soon as the train approaches jogging pace. The success of his tenure could hinge on how this group is managed.
He could:
a) Get them all motivated and putting in the serious hard yards (unlikely in a couple of obvious cases )
b) Have them drop off the panel when the pace picks up, leaving the rest of the group to power on ahead with proper inter-county levels of preparation
c) Have them drop off the panel, but then have it start a chain reaction of disgruntlement and end up undermining his position.

Avoiding c will be the key.
He should start off with every player on a clean slate. Not do what Pat Roe and Gerry Cooney did i.e. Summary execution of a couple of big names as a means of announcing themselves - Think of Colm Quinn and Scott Brady respectively.

His background in dealing with problem teenagers might be a help. Lets hope he has the other tools needed to get Offaly turned around.

bracknaghboy wrote:Is this McDonnell 'appointment' a late April fools joke or some sort of strange smoke screen while a proper manager is sorted out? Seriously.
He was in the paper saying that some of the training his school team did was "probably on a par with senior county level". Is he taking the piss or is out of his mind. Look at the training that Kildare have done for 5 years and they are still way off the pace and we now now have a chap who thinks that the bit of training he did with the young lads in the school will "probably" do for county level. He has brought his brother on board as well as a 'coach'. He also takes over the u21's and Pascal has been well and truly shafted. When is this 'appointment' being ratified? Is there any hope the clubs would step in and stop what appears to me and anyone I've spoken with to be madness.
If this goes ahead then I think we are in for a calamitous year.....I'd expect some players won't line out, a potential strike and a defeat to London in the league.

McDonnell is in and i think that he deserves support and be given a chance. I can see some of your reason for some of your comments though i dont think they are at all helpful or in anyway constructive. While id also have concerns given his relative inexperience, he certainly has a good track record albeit with teams of a much lower level. As ive mentioned, media will hang on every comment when you are such a position and people react accordingly. While i know that that Edenderry school team were very well prepared, It was probably naive to compare his school team to be prepared at inter county senior level even if he feels that is the case as many will misconstrue this as ridiculous even if it was the case. This naivety is one of youth and inexperience but not a major booboo even if it has ired some including Bracknagh boy.

One concern that i would have is that the article you refer to http://hoganstand.com/Offaly/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=175351 also reveals that his brother is installed as strength and conditioning coach. This is a naive move in my opinion and doesn't come across well even if he might be good in this area. Though i am not aware of his credentials in this area as i dont know the man at all, as far as i am concerned, only somebody with a sport science/PE degree and /or masters/ PHD in this area is now qualified enough to work with senior inter county teams in this area to compete with other teams that have taken things to new levels. We have been dealing with journeyman trainers for the last few years and accordingly, we have been way off the pace physically unable to compete with teams at championship pace. Longfords backroom team is a fully professional team of experts in their area and signs on with their improvement. If this man has neither of what is mentioned above, this appears to me to be a cheap option on the part of the county board to the detriment of the preparation of the squad but this does not surprise me at all.

The Tullamore tribune suggests that the backroom team will be announced at the weekend. This will be very interesting as id be very wary if the co board have much or any say in this as they are known to make political appointments from which they can muster control. Remember they put the chairman in as a selector a few years ago, and Laz got a role too as a member of the co board. If McDonnell has a bit of savvy , he will install Paschal in his backroom team for the 21 role given what he did last year with them. While he rightly would feel hard done by as he has been shafted, he could still have a massive influence if given the opportunity though he most likely wont be involved. It is my understanding that the board were not willing for Tom Coffee to do both senior and 21 together, yet they are willing to shaft Paschal for another man. Perhaps i am wrong on this, but my intuition tells me that Coffee opting out for work committments is totally a smoke screen on his part for something else!!!

One final observation i had was that McDonnell comes across as if Edenderry and area is the centre-point of Offaly football. Far from it. While he has had success at schools level in Edenderry, this success has been backboned by Kildare minors and probably less than 40% players are even from Offaly. Edenderry have won very little at senior or underage in the last ten years. The Rhode lads would obviously be well known to them given that they went to school in Edenderry, though he would be well advised to know that some of these rhode "stars" are part of the reason for the fall from grace of the senior football team in the last few years and he'd be well advised to steer well clear of some of them. The Ferbane, Clara and Tullamore areas would have the bulk of the talent within Offaly Football and he would be well advised to comb these areas for to get the talent that he needs to steer offaly on the right footing.

Teehan in his comments uses the eugene mcgee example with McDonnell and maybe he is right and hopefully he will be proved right. However McGee had won a few Sigerson titles with UCD and had trained plenty of co level footballers before his time with offaly, also this was in the 1970's. McDonnell has trained school kids to win an all ireland, a fantastic starting point in a career though incomparable with McGee of the time in a time now when the whole standard has moved on so much. He should probably got the minor gig or even u21 but now he is in the hot seat, he'll be expected to deliver and will have to deal with a lot of pressure from supporters like Bracknaghboy who are perhaps worried about what might happen. That said, I am very encouraged that the board are looking at a younger more progressive coach and hope that they give him the backing and support that he will need to make Offaly competitive again with teams in the top ten or twelve in the country.

First of all, I would like to wish the man all the very best in the role, and I would like to think that this will bring a fresh innovative approach to how Offaly go about their business on and off the field.
Just on a point about some of the training that would be done being on a par with a senior county team.
Think of the following,
1) These school teams train up to 4/5 times a week
2) They would put big emphasise on core strength, Speed and agility training
3) Game plans and coaching would be huge with lads nearly expected to have a lot of the fitness work done
4) Diet and Nutrition plans would be in place
5) Similar to county players having to juggle jobs, college, with training, a school trainer has to help players juggle schoolwork, exam preparation, parents (worse than any wife or girlfriend!!), and peer pressure.

So in terms of the planning and organistion there are many similarities.

However that is the comparison of a simplistic nature, and lets allow him some space. He knows whats ahead of him and the real concern is the relationships he will have to build with selectors, players, clubs around the county, many of whom know nothing about him. (Not necessarily a bad thing!!)

His key will be to link in with key advisors around the county, and maybe use his organisational skills and the work he has done in the school to roll out with the county board to underage clubs and adult clubs.

I would be hopeful that as well as making a go of the adult role that he can offer something additional in terms of structure to football, throughout the county.

How ironic it would be though if Teehans final appointment was a success, after his botched efforts of the last 5 years.

Finally, with regard to Paschal, one can only feel sympathy, however, I would say to him, plough on with the coaching career, there will be a new chairman coming in this November, and lets face it, in time he will be a real contender for the senior job.
He can feel hard done by, and it must be difficult to take, given the relative success of the u21s this year.

I would have to say If I was Paschal I would never get involved with offaly again. He has being badly treated and from what the word is Pat Teehan had said to paschal a few days before that Emmet would have no problem working with him. It has also being said that Paschal had heard that Mcdonell got both jobs from the new manager himself when txt to congradulate him on recieving the senior and was not contacted by any Co board Official until he made contact himself. What has gone wrong with the county board. I firmly believe Pat teehan has alot to answer for with the way he deals with these matters. I have No problem with Emmet Mcdonell getting the Offaly job he is a lovely man and will put in huge work and effort. But I dont think it is Fair the Way Paschal was treated. He gave Ten years off a playing career to Offaly and brought a bit of pride back last year with the u,21 reaching a leinster semi.

On the basis that this is not an attractive post, we have to accept that options were probably limited enough here. I'd have felt a lot better about giving McDonnell the role if he had at least coached a senior club team, however there is a lot to be said for getting somebody in early enough that they can take in the knockout stages of the club championships, where players will have a chance to demonstrate their ability to perform under pressure. Equally he might be right in his observation that coaching a school team is similar to a county team, however I would question the wisdom of airing such a view out loud. There are similarities, but there are big differences as well and while a lot of people don't appreciate what efforts went into the St Marys triumph this year, it's a bit naive to think that it's the same as co-ordinating a county side either.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I don't think Kerry or Dublin would be giving their county football team over to a guy whose main achievement was managing a school side, but they have a lot more to offer than we do. McDonnell has a lot in his favour and his task now is to leverage his strong points, to build a team around him that covers off the areas where he mightn't be as strong, and to earn the trust of the players.

Lone Shark wrote:I guess what I'm trying to say is that I don't think Kerry or Dublin would be giving their county football team over to a guy whose main achievement was managing a school side

Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't Jack O'Connor's main achievement managing school teams in Kerry before he got the Kerry job?

Jack O Connor had served his time as a senior selector for at least 1 year if not 2. He had also done a stint as U21 manager where ironically enough they were beaten by Waterford in a Munster final. Also he had won a few schools All Irelands, granted with a talented bunch and had also managed club senior team or two before taking on the role as Kerry senior boss. Plus he was in his mid forties before he got the role as manager of Kerry...

How can we be comparing ourselves with Dublin or Kerry?

Thats the problem on the county panels too. Everyone thinks they are better than they are. All these up and coming players think the are the sh!t before any of them have done anything to earn their "stardom".

We are on a par with London and the likes at the moment. Compare yourselves to them. Come down out of the clouds. The glory days are over for now old men.

Who on the Offaly team has earned the right to call themselves a county player?

On a further note. If I was a young potential county footballer, I would be delighted with this appointment, barring I am one of these pre-madonnas we as a county have created.

Good luck and best wishes to Emmett McDonnell on his appointment.

A few points,
1) I wouldn't consider us a very attractive option right now. A lot of people reckon we're one step above Kilkenny footballers so maybe we should be looking at ourselves as a Div 4 team right now instead of comparing ourselves to the top table.
2) Jason Ryan - School manager before Wexford, now one of the best
3) IMHO he's a better appointment than someone like Luke Dempsey, Liam Kearns etc. Journey men that would bring nothing to the table for Offaly. This lad has it all to prove and motivation to do this.
4) Pascal is right to feel pissed however if putting Senior and U21's under the same manager is the right thing to do. If they felt Emmett was the better option then giving him both makes sense
5) This is a great Job, worse we can do is drop below Kilkenny and I really don't think that will happen. On the upside however the talent is there to get to Div 2 and a Leinster is not out of the question with a favorable draw and a lot of hard work over the next 2-3 years.
6) To really do this right what you want is the senior manager involved in the minor set-up also as well as the U21. That way a system/game plan is put in place so that by the time they hit Senior it's 2nd nature to them. Put the correct conditioning plan in place for all of them and keep this feeding through year after year. I don't think this is very difficult to do but needs a lot of team work and someone overseeing it all.

Daleamar wrote:How can we be comparing ourselves with Dublin or Kerry?

Just to field this, my point was that if we were Dublin or Kerry we would be entitled to expect our managers to have achieved more, however we're not, so complaining our manager having no experience is a little bit rich - that's all. Rest assured there was no comparison, I'm well aware we're division 4 on merit.

Muck Savage said it all best! I'm encouraged by everything I hear about Emmett and his brother Gordon. According to Kevin Corrigan Gordon was at the Cappincur-Birr game last week. That's hitting the ground running!

The new manager should go with a new panel and resist the temptation to go back to the old "faithfuls" when the going gets tough! We can't fall any further than Division 4 anyway. Build around the 20-24 year olds who are prepared to dedicate themselves to inter-county senior football.

I hope that the County Board recommend decent selectors to him who know the talent from the rest of the county. It'd be great if Paschal Kelleghan is part of the backroom team but, if not, I hope that the County Board finds some progressive people to serve with the McDonnells. Maybe John Ryan from Birr since he knows the minors from the last few years.