SLAUGHTNEIL camogie team will have a new management set up when later this year they embark on their search for a seventh successive Derry senior title.
The outgoing management team of Damien McEldowney, Dominic McKinley, Michael Glover, Padraig Ó Mianáin, Shaun McEldowney and Karen Donaghy has overseen six county titles, four provincial crowns and three successive All-Ireland titles.
The new management team will be headed by the only other man to bring an All-Ireland senior club title to Ulster.
That 2008 victory by Rossa was fashioned by Micky McCullough in his first season in charge in succession to Jim Nelson who had taken the west Belfast club to four successive Ulster titles and defeat in the 2006 All-Ireland club final.
McCullough, a teacher in St Gerard’s School in west Belfast, will be assisted by Muireann Quinn, who played corner back on that Rossa All-Ireland winning team and who was also a defender on the club side that lost the Antrim Intermediate final in a replay to Tír na nÓg last September.
It is unclear whether the defender intends to continue her playing career.
Well-respected Armagh coach Ronan McWilliams will also be part of McCullough’s backroom team and a couple of other names are expected to be included before the start of the new season.
McCullough had declared an interest in the Derry senior hurling vacancy before Cormac Donnelly and Dominic McKinley were offered it in December.
Last year the Belfast man was coaching Dublin side Ballyboden St Enda's, whom he helped to the 2018 Dublin title and a narrow defeat in the Leinster final to Ballyhale Shamrocks.
He also had a stint coaching the Dublin county hurlers under Mattie Kenny while at the same time working with Anne Downey and the Kilkenny senior camogie side.
McCullough was in charge of the Antrim senior camogie team in 2010, during which time future Slaughtneil forward Shannon Graham broke through into the team winning an Ulster senior title with a single point victory over Derry in Glenariffe.
His coaching CV also includes a provincial minor hurling title with Down and two under 21 crowns with Derry alongside Brian McGilligan.
He spent a number of years as a full time hurling coach with Ulster GAA before re-training to become a teacher.
The outgoing management team has achieved remarkable success with Slaughtneil camogs, losing just one game since Loughgiel defeated them in the 2015 Ulster final.
That loss was to Sarsfield’s of Galway in Croke Park 11 months ago when a controversial refereeing decision denied them a 20 metres free deep in injury time.
A point from that free would have given them a draw and a second bite at a fourth successive All-Ireland club title.
They extended their string of county titles to six with a 2-8 to 1-7 victory over Swatragh in a replayed final at the start of October despite starting that game with just seven of the players that won the club their first All-Ireland title in 2017.
The outgoing management team is remaining in charge until the club’s 2020 season comes to a close.
Slaughtneil were due to put their Ulster title on the line against Loughgiel tomorrow (Saturday, February 6) but new Covid-19 restrictions introduced since Christmas has put that on hold.
Before issuing a new date Ulster Council is understood to be waiting on a decision by Ardchomhairle on whether or not they intend extending their dates for completing the All-Ireland series.
