The Man Behind the Wire: The time was right for Kelly and the Offaly senior footballers

HAD Liam Kearns not tragically died so suddenly during the National Football League campaign earlier this year, the opportunity would not have arisen but the time is right to give Declan Kelly his chance as the Offaly senior football manager.

Once it became clear that Martin Murphy would not be getting a full year in charge, Declan Kelly was the very obvious front runner and it is good that him and the County Board were able to reach agreement.

The Kilclonfert man had also been a front runner when John Maughan's reign had ended in 2022 but it didn't happen at that stage with County Board chairman Michael Duignan saying that Kelly had ruled himself out because of work commitments.

Liam Kearns had been a surprise appointment as manager. It wasn't an appointment that had supporters wildly excited as he had been around the block a bit on the managerial circuit but the County Board did their research and it was working very well.

The word of mouth emerging from the camp during Kearns' brief spell in charge was very positive. The players had clearly responded well to him and Offaly were motoring along nicely when Kearns' sudden passing put the county into uncharted waters.

The County Board did the right thing at that time with Martin Murphy stepping up from selector to interim manager. The Gracefield man and his backroom team continued on the good work, securing Division 3 status in the National Football League and then leading Offaly to a memorable win over Meath in the Leinster Senior Football Championship.

They almost took Louth in the semi-final but the season went downhill after this as most of the players didn't warm to the Tailteann Cup and they eventually made an innocous exit against Wexford. The Tailteann Cup displays meant that Offaly were always likely to be seeking new management for 2024 and it was good that Martin Murphy, a passionate, principled, decent Offaly football man, made his own decision and walked away with his head held high.

The unfortunate circumstances created an opening for Declan Kelly and once he expressed his interest in going for the position and his availability, it was essentially a done deal. It is doubtful if the County Board approached anyone else and instead focused on reaching agreement with Kelly and whatever structures he wanted in place for his term.

Kelly's elevation is a reward for his achievement in managing Offaly to the All-Ireland U-20 Football Championship in 2021. It was a remarkable success, a profound managerial achievement and history may well show the enormity of what they did.

The time has come for many of that team to make the step up to senior county level. They may have study commitments, some of them have struggled with horrendous injuries and some are young: John Furlong, Cormac Egan, Keith O'Neill and Tom Hyland had played in the delayed 2020 Leinster MFC final and played their last year in the U-20 grade this year.

Time is on their side but not a whole lot of it. Compared to years ago, football is essentially a young man's game and the examples of players coming through after their mid 20s are fairly rare now. Players are at their peak fitness from their early to mid 20s and if they don't emerge and commit very quickly, the ship can be gone in the blink of an eye.

Declan Kelly has a special relationship with that U-20 squad. There was nothing to suggest at the start of 2021 that Offaly would win Leinster and All-Ireland U-20 football titles. That team didn't do a whole lot at minor level but they took off spectacularly in 2021, generating huge momentum and eventually doing something that most Offaly supporters never thought they would see again.

It wasn't just that they won. It was the quality of their football that set the pulse racing. They played with some pace and intensity, their movement was breathtaking as they attacked opponents with all barrells loaded and they won admirers far outside county boundaries.

It was extraordinary to witness and perhaps the biggest tribute that can be paid to that team and management is to note that a few members have been nowhere near as good since then at club level.

Injuries have been a factor. Kieran Dolan has been desperately unfortunate while John Furlong, Cormac Egan, Cathal O'Donoghue, Oisin Keenan-Martin and Keith O'Neill have all had extended spells on the sidelines with debilitating injuries. They have been desperately unlucky but Offaly need a few of them to come through very quickly.

Injuries and their fitness levels will dictate a lot but everything else being equal, Furlong looks a cast iron certainty to make the grade. He is the most natural, complete player to emerge on the scene in Offaly in a while. Egan's game has to evolve a bit for the highest level as he will now come up against corner and wing backs as fast as him but he is also a hugely exciting prospect – he has work to do to make it but he has that rare ability to generate anticipation in supporters and it would be great to see him committing fully and getting a prolonged chance to bed in next year.

O'Donoghue's development is important. The Kilcormac-Killoughey man has transferred to play his club football in Galway but will remain committed to the Offaly cause. It is hard to blame him for switching as he simply won't get the level of football he needs in Kilcormac-Killoughey, where the game barely generates lip service. There had been occasional speculation linking him to a move to Shamrocks in Offaly – the O'Donoghue family home is a stone's throw from the Rahan parish boundary, near the Blueball, and you can be certain that Shamrocks' members sounded him out about a move but O'Donoghue is way too high profile for anything other than a fully legal switch to take place. His first cousin, Galway star Matthew Tierney plays with the Oughterard club in Galway and moving there was a means of satisfying O'Donoghue's need to play top grade football.

Offaly needs his athleticism and movement while you would hope Keith O'Neill recovers fully from his injuries – there are fears that he won't but O'Neill's prospects and natural ability are as promising as any from that team.

So far only Rory Egan and Lee Pearson have established themselves from that U-20 team while Jack Bryant has made an impact as a sub and Aaron Brazil and Morgan Tynan have featured on the panel. It is not enough and what that U-20 squad does in the next couple of years will dictate so much for Offaly football.

Egan and Pearson have clearly shown they have the right stuff for this level, though Pearson's interest seemd to dwindle in the Tailteann Cup and Egan opted out as he went travelling to America. The jury is still out on Bryant, who also went to America but getting the best out of him is also crucial. Furlong, Bryant and Cormac Egan were the three star players on the U-20 team and this trio along with O'Donoghue and O'Neill have obvious potential.

They won't all come through. There are outstanding underage players who don't step up to the next level – commitment and desire can be a factor, they choose other priorities and there are also some who simply don't have what it takes to adapt to the highest level.

That possibility is certainly there for a couple of the above named players. There are also a plethora of others who could make the grade, Kieran Dolan faces a long, challenging recovery but if he can transverse it, you would imagine a role could be found for him in defence. Cathal Flynn is another with above average ability and flair. He decided against coming in this year but he is in the same class as Furlong, O'Neill etc.

Then there are others with a lot of work to do but who could make the grade if they do it. Morgan Tynan is one, a strapping 6 foot 4 man with the size and physique that Offaly is crying out for. An obvious midfielder if he can improve his athleticism and energy levels, he has great natural ability and Declan Kelly is likely to do what he did with him at U-20 level: tell him that he is playing midfield and nowhere else. If he can make that transition, he will be a huge asset to Offaly.

Goalkeeper Sean O'Toole, defenders Oisin Keenan-Martin and Tom Hyland, midfielder Ed Cullen and forward Aaron Kellaghan are others with the potential to develop.

Not all of them will make it. There will always be wastage from an underage sign and the early indications are that some of the above named won't come through. Declan Kelly, however, is the right man to ask the serious questions, to help them to do the right thing and get the best out of themselves.

Kelly's rise to fame has been meteoric. He comes from a small junior club in Kilclonfert and was a decent goalkeeper. He played minor and U-21 for Offaly but senior was a step too far for him – he featured on the panel at different stages but his competitive appearances were restricted to two league games inm 2000 and 2003. He played mostly outfield for his club, either as a midfielder or target man at full forward but it is as a manager that he found his niche.

Almost everything he has touched turned to gold. He served his apprenticeship at club level, starting off with lower grade teams and making progress at every stage. He did well with St Brigid's and was then instrumental in Cappincur's revival, helping them back up the grades. He initially earned his spurs with the Daingean parish U-21 side, St Vincent's, leading them to three titles in a row from 2014 to 2016 – he had taken them over in 2011 and only finished playing himself in 2013.

His experiences here whetted his appetite while he managed St Brigid's to the intermediate football title in 2012, Cappincur to intermediate and senior “B” in 2015 and 2016. He later had great success with St Loman's in Mullingar, winning Westmeath senior football titles there before stepping down last year.

His achievements on the club circuit earmarked him as a amanager with considerable potential but he bided his time before taking the next step. He has proven to be very astute with his career choices very step of the way and didn't take on any job unless it was right and the timing was good for him.

He resisted overtures to be Offaly minor football manager and at one stage a few years ago, he was announced as the Offaly U-21 manager at a County Board meeting but it ended in farce as it emerged that full agreement hadn't been reached and it wasn't a done deal – there were issues with then senior manager Pat Flanagan about the access Kelly would have to U-21 players then on the senior squad and it was a couple of years later before he eventually bit the bullet, taking over as U-21 manager in 2017 (the grade later changed to U-20).

He has had no shortage of offers from clubs in a variety of counties and has been sounded out for other county jobs. He never said eys for the sake of it and things had to be very right – the number one criteria is that the players buy in to what he wants and the officers in charge sing from the same hymn sheet and will support him. In cases where he had doubts about either, he simply didn't take on roles. He didn't need brilliant footballers everywhere he went but he did demand complete commitment.

His early choices really set the ball rolling. St Vincent's U-21s were in his own parish and he had an instant affinity to them; Croghan based St Brigid's is close to his Kilclonfert home and he would have known them well. It was the same with Cappincur – they were in the same parish as Kilclonfert, his wife Eilish is a Daly from there, he was assured of complete backing from club officers and he learned a lot there.

When the time was right to dip his toes outside county boundaries, he again choose wisely, going to a seriously competitive outfit in St Loman's and again, learning a lot as he dealt with talented players such as John Heslin – the importance of managing players of this calibre and ones he was not familiar with from a different county has to be acknowledged. His managerial career has represented a natural progression every step of the way and he has never got ahead of himself or taken on jobs that were bigger than he could handle at any stage of his evolution.

With Offaly U-21s, he quickly showed he had what it took for the higher level as he dealt with hairy issues in his first year in charge. There was plenty of talk when he left off some capable players as they hadn't committed fully but he made no apologies for his calls, stuck to his guns and his stance was vindicated as none of those players subsequently played senior county footballl.

A shrewd judge of character, he is not afraid to make hard calls. He sets the bar high, calls people out, leaves no one under any illusions about what is required and what they must do. The lines are very clear – either they do it and live that lifestyle or they take a hike.

The exact same will be brought to his new role and you can be sure that there will be a mini shake up. There are players on the panel this year who won't be there next year – some of that will be entirely natural as their race will have been run and the younger players will displace them but there may be a couple who won't do what the manager wants and they will be gone.

Kelly has also taken a leadership role with the Offaly development squad system and again, he has shown his mettle when required. There was a furore last year when some players were dropped from a squad for missing training because they played a soccer game. The County Board rules were being enforced – chairman Michael Duignan later explained that they had no issue with players playing other codes but they couldn't miss county training because of it.

They very much backed the people at the helm, who enforced the rules, and Kelly has shown a real appetite for involvement at every level – club and county, underage and adult.

The presence of Michael Duignan as County Board chairman is also important. Duignan has to step down under the five year limit at the end of 2024 and he is a central part of Offaly GAA raising the bar at every level. They are both strong personalties and it will be a surprise if they don't have words at some stage but they will appreciate what each other is trying to do and the differing roles they have to play. Crucially, Kelly will get the backing he needs from the chairman and officers and their intentions are identical: to improve Offaly's playing fortunes and win.

Now the key is to give him time, to have patience. He needs and deserves three years in charge. Trust him and if there are short term hits, accept them. Relegation from Division 3 could happen very easily next year and if that is the case, don't reach for nuclear buttons, keep the daggers locked up. Allow the management time to rock the boat, steady the ship and get the new generation up and going. Enjoy the ride and wait for the outcome.