Who wants the job?

THE rumour mill is an amazing thing. Colm Coyle"s departure from the Meath senior football managerial hot seat was hardly five minutes confirmed when already a host of names were put forward to fill his shoes. Colm O"Rourke, Gerry McEntee, Sean Boylan, Dudley Farrell, Sean Kelly, Andy McEntee, Damien Sheridan, Tony Kearney, Eamonn Barry, Mattie Kerrigan and even 'outsiders" like Joe Kernan and Luke Dempsey have all been touted as possible replacements for Coyle who brought his tenure to an end following Meath"s humbling All-Ireland SFC qualifier defeat by Limerick. Taking up the Meath challenge is going to be a difficult task for whoever finally does get the job because it appears the position is something of a poisoned chalice at the moment. This time last year, Coyle was the new Messiah of Meath football. He pushed Dublin to their limits in Leinster and then, following qualifier victories over Down and Fermanagh, he plotted the downfall of Galway and Tyrone. However it all went pear-shaped after that with demoralising losses to Cork, Wexford and Limerick. The management went from heroes to zeroes in some supporters eyes in the space of 10 months. It was a harsh fall from grace, but no matter what the outcome the reality remains that Meath football needs another new mastermind to bring the county back to the halcyon days of the 1980s and '90s. So just who will get the job? It seemed that all Colm O"Rourke had to do was announce that he was interested in the role and the job would have been his. However, the former Meath legend has firmly indicated that now is not the right time for him to take on the role. 'I will not be letting my name go forward. My first priority is my family. In my work sense, it is as principal of St Patrick"s CS, Navan and that is particularly time consuming, with a lot of evening meetings,' wrote O"Rourke in his Sunday Independent column. 'Also it would probably be much easier on my son Shane if I weren"t involved at a time when he is trying to establish himself on the team. 'Not going forward has nothing to do with being unwilling to give up what is perceived as a 'cushy' number in RTE or even with the Sunday Independent. It is simply at this stage of my life, and with so many other interests, I do not have the time to devote to a job which is more or less full-time.' O"Rourke hinted that he might he interested in the position at some stage in the future, but as for this time around he is a non-runner. So who will get the job? Outgoing selector Dudley Farrell has distanced himself from the public resignations of Coyle and Tommy Dowd and appears to be willing to allow his name go forward. He has a great pedigree at underage level, leading Meath to the Leinster minor title in 2006. His presence would also provide the vital continuity of the good work started by Coyle, but there might be other, stronger candidates. Top of the list could be current Navan O"Mahonys boss Sean Kelly. The former Dunderry player served the best part of his playing days under Sean Boylan and as a coach he has done some great work with Dunderry, winning three successive u-21 FCs, with St Ultan"s, Castletown and the Meath minors and u-21s. Kelly has forged a successful partnership with Sean Barry and that ticket may be the key to getting Meath football back on track. Andy McEntee and Damien Sheridan are also two of the main contenders, but McEntee"s lack of managerial experience, despite leading Donaghmore / Ashbourne to the IFC last year, might count against him. Sheridan might also want to take a step back from the role as he has three sons who could well command a place in any future Meath panels. Gerry McEntee is probably second favourite to get the job behind Kelly. The Meath midfield legend has built up a wealth of managerial experience in Dublin with St Brigid"s and with the minor side, but he has indicated that he would not be interested in the job. two former managers Boylan and Barry have also been linked to the role. Boylan has expressed that he would not be going for the position again, but Barry refused to rule out running for a second time in the post. In an opinion poll on www.meathchronicle.ie 40.6% respondents wanted O"Rourke to succeed Coyle as Meath boss, while 23.4% plumped for McEntee. Sean Boylan"s name was an option on the poll and he tallied 16.8% of the votes with former Armagh boss Joe Kernan earning 15.2%. Kelly wasn"t listed as an option on the poll, but with Boylan, McEntee and O"Rourke since ruling themselves out of the equation Kelly could have polled highly. The process of finding a new manager begins immediately. Clubs will have to nominate a successor before Friday, 15th August. Those names will have to be verified and then an interview process will be held by a select committee. Following an interview with all the candidates the interview committee will then nominate one name, that person will be put forward to the Co Committee executive who will recommend the candidate to the delegates at the September Co Committee meeting. It will then be up to club delegates to ratify the decision. Any new manager should be in a position to assemble his panel in early October. The countdown begins.