This year”s National Football League sees a significant trend with twelve outside managers at the helm, with a remarkable majority, ten, hailing from Ulster. This influx of external coaching talent fosters a revival of past connections among teams and managers.
Among the outside managers, Mickey Harte, the former long-serving coach of Tyrone, stands out as he prepares to face his former county in round five. Currently, Harte is a joint-manager for Offaly alongside Declan Kelly. This weekend, he will lead Offaly against Derry, the team he guided to a Division One title in 2024 before his departure. Derry is now under the leadership of Ciaran Meenagh, who played for Harte during his time with the Red Hands.
Harte has already faced off against his past assistant, Gavin Devlin, who took over as Louth”s manager after Ger Brennan left to manage Dublin. With Malachy O”Rourke, another of Harte”s former colleagues, now in charge of Tyrone, it”s evident that all three of Harte”s previous counties are currently headed by outside managers.
Division One will see no outside managers this season, following the demotion of Tyrone and Derry last year. While Derry was coached by another of Harte”s former players, Paddy Tally, until his departure, several outside coaches have emerged in the top flight. Tally has now joined forces with new Mayo manager Andy Moran, who was previously involved with Monaghan.
This weekend, Moran and Monaghan”s current manager, Gabriel Bannigan, will meet in Clones, with former Antrim coach Andy McEntee having taken over the reins from Moran.
In Galway, two former managers from Cavan, Mickey Graham and Raymond Galligan, have joined Padraic Joyce“s senior setup after Galligan”s recent departure from Cavan.
As for Division Two, outside managers include former Armagh player Aaron Kernan coaching Meath and Luke Barrett transitioning from Donegal to Derry.
Division Three mirrors this trend with three outside managers, all from Ulster. Declan Bonner, the former Donegal manager, is now leading Fermanagh, while Mark McHugh has stepped in at Westmeath. Additionally, Justin McNulty, a former defender for Armagh, is in his third season managing Laois.
Division Four also features four outside managers, including Mark Doran from Down, who is tasked with reviving Antrim”s football fortunes. Meanwhile, Steven Poacher continues with Leitrim, and Armagh legend Oisin McConville is in his fourth season with Wicklow. Mike Solan, the only non-Ulster manager in Division Four, leads Longford.
The trend of appointing outside managers has a long history, particularly in London. However, since Michael Maher took the reins in late 2019, the team has been steadily evolving.
