NEW LAOIS MANAGER

[south Laois]

Wouldn't go near John Evans. I suppose Jason Ryan might be worth a chance as there is no obvious outstanding manager out there who is realistic.

[OTF]

Paul Curran?

Get the f**k out of here.

Tell us more.

[OTF]

Wouldn't go near John Evans. I suppose Jason Ryan might be worth a chance as there is no obvious outstanding manager out there who is realistic.

Why ?

[south Laois]

OTF, Evans comes across to me as a bit of a spoofer, maybe that's just me. Jason Ryan did a good job with Wexford. Can't see too many other candidates if Cunningham or Sugrue are not interested.

[redsetanta]

I wouldn't have a problem with John Evans who did well in both Tipp and Roscommon. Ryan shot his bolt with Kildare in my opinion and as for the likes of PAul Curran you are as well giving the job to a Laois man if that's the height of your ambitions!

[Giovanni]

Evans is by far the best of the established managers in my opinion.

I thought that Jason Ryan actually underachieved with an excellent bunch of Wexford players.

[south Laois]

It's all about opinions but Ryan got Wexford to an All Ireland semi final and they've been in free fall since. He probably didn't get the backing with Kildare after all the money McGeeney spent.

[Tony]

Not exactly an awe inspiring list. Out of that bunch, I'd go with Jason Ryan. Smart, tactical, good man-manager, committed. He hasn't shown that he'd be a certain bet (his reign at Kildare was poor) but I've seen enough potential in him to give him a chance (especially if it's vs Paul Curran).

As for Evans, he's done a lot with Roscommon and Tipp, + underage & look where they are now. But I just don't see him fitting into the Laois set up and getting the most out of the players.

Ryan has a lot of potential - he's young and hungry for success. He'll know he didn't do himself justice with kildare. We can forget about Curran and likely whoever it is from Laois (Joe Higgins?). Evans is way too risky for me and could mark a mass exodus in the squad. Ryan is my number 1 out of those candidates.

[High Fielder]

Yeah agree 100% Tony. A poor list and Ryan probably the best of them with a point to prove too. Unless Chris Conway wants it (unlikely) I'd have no interest either in a Laois candidate. The difference between the reality (the list above) and the fantasy (Parkinson asking for James Horan) should serve as a good reminder to everyone of our place in the world of GAA. That said, we don't owe anyone anything, so giving the likes of Curran a leg up is a complete no no for me

[Giovanni]

Evans is way too risky for me and could mark a mass exodus in the squad.

Why do you think this would happen? I would have thought, on the contrary, that Evans' key advantage is his ability to get a good spirit and belief in the camp. I don't think he's much of a tactician so that mightn't please everyone here but his teams always play with confidence and spirit. Generally, I'm surprised that Laois support don't seem to give him much credit for the work he's done everywhere he's been.

Cavan are also looking for a manager now too and I'd be surprised if they wouldn't be looking at Evans so it may not be feasible to get him anyway. For me, Jason Ryan would be an equivalent appointment to Tomas O Flatharta - now that's where you might get the exodus......

[Tony]

Evans is way too risky for me and could mark a mass exodus in the squad.

I don't think he's much of a tactician so that mightn't please everyone

Exactly. He's not. So that's a major deal breaker for me. The players aren't stupid either. They'll see he's not up to much in the brain department after about 3 months in the job and they'll lose interest in playing for him accordingly.

Jason Ryan is in no way a bluffer. He knows exactly what he's doing. I agree that his spell at Kildare was very underwhelming but I really do think he still has a LOT to offer. He's a fantastic coach, young, hungry for success, a superb man-manager & a good tactician. I'd be satisfied with that appointment. Out of the names that have emerged, his makes the most sense, by far, for me.

[Tony]

One more point and then I'll leave it at that.

If you think about it, both Laois & Ryan are a good fit. Laois are after a very poor season but we can do a lot better and we do have potential. Similarly, Jason is on the back of a poor spell at Kildare but there's not much doubt in his ability and potential. Both know they've under achieved and both are hungry for far better success. Both are also hoping to prove themselves and reach our potential.  Jason's a very smart guy and is as sound as they come. He'd be 100% committed to Laois and wouldn't be an excuse man like Mick "We couldn't find a pitch to train in for 4 months" Lillis. No disrespect to Mick but he wasn't up to it. Curran and Evans (and likely the Laois candidate) just sound like "more of the same". At least Ryan is fresh, young and eager to prove himself.

[Giovanni]

That's an interesting take on it.

I don't doubt at all that Jason Ryan is a nice guy. He certainly comes across well in media interviews.

I wouldn't consider him to be a tactical genius either (judging by the work he did in Kildare and Wexford) and I doubt the players would be particularly inspired by the appointment. His record in Kildare is appalling and they have far greater playing and financial resources than we do. Evans took Roscommon from Division 3 to Division 1 while Ryan was going in the opposite direction with Kildare.

If he comes to Laois, I very much hope I'm wrong but for me that would be the last nail in the coffin for this group of players.

[portlaoisekid]

Hold on lads, maybe I'm wrong but I thought the players are playing for laois , not the manager...all my life I've seen laois players dictate this , that and the other with regards the manager... it's never , ever been our players fault and imo it'll never change ....


For the record , I've no problem with Ryan , Curran or Evans taking over but like every year with laois we await as to whether the players approve , maybe I'm old school but I think it's a joke .

[ILikeStrawberryJam]

Bit baffled with the posts about paul curran

Had a lot of success with ballymun and clan na geal ..

Highly though of ex player and i know ballymun lads respected him as manager

Young and keen to impress .. i think he be a good appointment

Maybe im missing something ?