McShea's Say: Ulster football will only get better with Malachy O’Rourke involved

I believe that the battle for supremacy in Ulster football will be enhanced in 2025 if Tyrone gets Malachy O’Rourke as their new manager.  

A good friend said to me over the weekend that nothing was certain when it came to County Boards, but the Fermanagh native has a footballing CV which is outstanding, and O’Rourke must be a shoo-in to replace Brian Dooher and Fergal Logan.  

Before Jim McGuinness returned to the Donegal job when there was a doubt about his availability, I would have loved to have seen O’Rourke come to manage Donegal, but now that he has intimated that he is available to make the step back to inter-county management, his imminent return will be greeted with euphoria in the Red Hand County should he get the job. 

Values such as honesty, loyalty, and common courtesy dictate O’Rourke’s very existence. They are old fashioned qualities which are not as important as they used to be, but nonetheless central elements to his personality.  

As a manager, one of his greatest assets is his ability to create a team bond, and unity of spirit where good players often became great, and where ordinary ones did extraordinary things when they were most needed.  

Training and managing players in today’s game with strong and different personalities, and egos is not easy, but O’Rourke has told his teams what was possible, and they always delivered. 

With Watty Graham’s in Derry, he has won several county titles, and two Ulster club championships, and they are currently All-Ireland club champions. While he was managing Monaghan, they beat Donegal in the 2013 Ulster final when we were the defending All-Ireland champions.  

When Mickey Harte made the decision to move on from managing Derry, O’Rourke was the first name mentioned as a replacement for the Ballygawley man, but O’Rourke, who also lives in Ballygawley, decided that the role was not for him.  

The fact that he has now expressed an interest in managing Tyrone would mean that he sees significant potential in the Red Hand County and believes that he is the man to see that potential realised.  

Following a most impressive playing career with his native Fermanagh, few would have seen it lead to a more fruitful career in management, but his infectious enthusiasm, his deep knowledge of the game, his thirst for success, and his ability to bring his players to a peak of excellence when it mattered most, are the hallmarks of a top-class manager.  

As a member of the current Football Review Committee under Jim Gavin, I would be confident that the work of those involved will see some radical but positive changes in football when the work that is ongoing is completed in the near future.  

Two years ago, when his Glen team was beaten in controversial circumstances in the All-Ireland club final, his team had a right to object to the result on a technical issue. But O’Rourke immediately stated that he would have no part in wanting to win a game off the pitch. That level of sportsmanship will make him a great asset to inter-county football in Ulster. 

The championship is yet to come to life                                                                                                                   

As the championship continues here in Donegal it would be fair to say that it has not caught fire yet. The fact that teams had several outings before the cut-and-trust of knockout football even happens has not delivered the quality associated with championship season.  

I always look for at least two or three players to emerge in club campaigns who could put their hand up to tell the county manager that they have the potential to get a run out in the Donegal jersey.  

Apart from Seanán Carr, who is a goal machine for his club Four Masters, few have alerted Jim McGuinness so far in this campaign about their potential at a higher level.  

However, there is still a lot of football to be played before the destiny of the Dr Maguire Cup is confirmed for 2024, but already few will be looking beyond Naomh Conaill or St Eunan’s. 

Sympathy  

Ballyshannon lost one of its most popular young men this week with the premature death of Darragh O’Malley-Daly from Abbeylands.  

The massive turnout for Darragh’s wake and funeral was an indication of the esteem and popularity we all have for him and his family. 

To his wife Mairead, his mum Mary, his two boys, and the Daly and Finn families, I extend my sincere sympathy for their heartbreaking loss.