Meath senior football

[Dunneroyal]

From Irish independent

Colm O'Rourke has stepped down as Meath senior football manager, opting not to put himself forward for the third year of three agreed with the county board in 2022.
O'Rourke was given a three-year term when he replaced Any McEntee, subject to a review after two years.

That review has been ongoing since soon after the team's championship exit to Monaghan in June.

In the meantime two of his selectors, former players Barry Callaghan and Stephen Bray, decided not to go forward again.

O'Rourke has confirmed his departure to the 'Irish Independent' and says his work to make coaching additions was at an advanced stage.

But he was not in a position to declare a new backroom team in time for a Meath Management Committee meeting tomorrow (Monday) night because those who he said were coming on board were still involved with clubs and he did not want to compromise that.


Meath's Management Committee had met and discussed the review at a meeting last week but pushed a conclusion on by a further 11 days to give him more time to put a backroom in place.

They wanted the structure and identity of his new backroom team in time for tomorrow night's meeting. A recommendation was then to be put to the clubs on Tuesday night.

O'Rourke, the two-time All-Ireland winner and well known former 'Sunday Game' analyst and 'Sunday Independent' columnist, decided not to continue on, chiefly because of that deadline. He wanted more time to complete his additions.

His two years in charge brought mixed results with a Tailteann Cup win last year overshadowing underwhelming championship performances.

Meath did retain Division 2 status in both years and there was significant change in personnel during that time.



Among the local candidates sure to be linked with the vacancy will be Kilmacud Crokes' 2023 All-Ireland club winning manager Robbie Brennan, who lives in Dunboyne and has strong Meath connections, and Cathal O Bric, the county's All-Ireland winning minor manager in 2021 who followed that up with a Leinster U-20 success, Meath's first in 23 years, earlier this year.

O'Rourke was keen to bring O Bric in as part of the senior management for 2025 with a view to paving the way for him to take over in future years but O Bric has remained committed to the U-20s.

O'Rourke's former Meath colleague Bernard Flynn and Michéal McDermott, who has managed Clare in the past and guided Wolfe Tones to a Meath title in 2021, sought the position two years ago and may be interested again.

Meath has only once appointed a manager from outside the county when Seamus McEnaney was in charge in 2011 and 2012.

I wish him well personally. He was just never cut out for the job.  Now we need to get in a knowledgeable coach.

[Captain Scarlet]

What a mess, so now more than likely one of the lads who was lined up to be his selector could be manager?
Like he surely can tell the board who he has lined up for internal purposes and then they decide and bring it up when all is sorted?

This will set them back again now.

[thejuice]

Right decision but shouldn't have taken so long. County Board haven't helped themselves here taking over 10 weeks and now have to start looking with the championship in full swing.

[Dag Dog]

Will O'Rourke get any offers from counties or clubs who want to play retro football?

[From the Bunker]

Will O'Rourke get any offers from counties or clubs who want to play retro football?

He might get lucky and bump into Marty McFly! 

[Dunneroyal]

Will O'Rourke get any offers from counties or clubs who want to play retro football?

He might get lucky and bump into Marty McFly! 

I'd say he's back to rte

[Dunneroyal]

Any word on who has been nominated?  I presume both lar and Robbie. Anyone else ?

[Dunneroyal]

The interview done with Robbie Brennan has filled me with hope.  Can see packed out games this year. I'm finally excited by Meath again

[Blowitupref]

Colm O'Rourke speaks out on his departure as Meath manager.

"I wanted to get over the disappointment of not being reappointed, I want to see the Meath team do well, I want to see the new management doing well, but I don't want to be treated with such lack of respect as I was shown at the Co Board meeting last week, and that includes Seán Boylan and all the other people that were involved with me,"

"In actual fact there were two deadlines put to me. One for the middle of August and one for a management meeting which I believe was due to take place on Monday 26th August," he said.

"When the first deadline was set the chairman (Jason Plunkett) and Liam Keane made it clear that we had to have a full management team in place and if that didn't happen then the review committee would not be recommending me for a third year as manager.

"Not only that, I also have an email from the chairman which read that himself and Liam Keane would not be recommending me for manager.

"I got that email in August without explanation, without reason, just a statement that they would not be recommending me. That email was before I was given a deadline to get a management team in place," O'Rourke said.

"So Seán Boylan and myself then met (the review committee) and we were told that we had to have our management team in place by the last week of August.

"At that stage I told them who the people we wanted were, but that they wouldn't be named until after their involvement with their club teams, one in Meath and one in another county, was finished.

"We were told that they didn't think this would be acceptable to management, so I basically got fed up with them at that stage because I felt that the whole process was not carried out properly."

"if there was no deadline imposed I would not have pulled out. Why would I pull out? I still wanted to stay. I had my homework done in the background."

"As far as I am concerned I was led up the garden path. That's worse than being told you are not getting the job. In my opinion the whole review process was a complete shambles."

 "there was no suggestion at that meeting that the players didn't want me to continue. If there was I'd have gone straight away, I wouldn't have been gone for a minute. Who wants to be in a situation like that?