DESPITE the fact that nobody is quite sure when there will be any football or when they’ll even be allowed to train (legally), the managerial merry-go-round is close to grinding to a stop again.
Clubs are jumping into gear sooner than ever in the chase for a new manager, with some that are ousted early almost ready to appoint by the time their championship has ended.
For many, there is comfort in what they know. At the very top of the tree, 2019 (and ultimately still the reigning) Ulster club champions Kilcoo are sticking with Mickey Moran and Conleith Gilligan, and they’ve brought in last year’s St Eunan’s Letterkenny boss Richie Thornton to replace Paul Devlin and strengthen their management team even further.
Slaughtneil will be under Paul Bradley although he has lost the assistance of Gavin Devlin.
Adrian Cush, Paul Quinn and James Slater are staying in charge of their Derry final opponents and 2018 winners Magherafelt, but the big appointment in Derry has been Malachy O’Rourke’s switch into the Glen hotseat.
They will hope the former Monaghan manager, who brings Ryan Porter with him, can have the same impact he had on the Loup when they won an Ulster Club title out of nowhere back in 2003.
Tyrone champions Dungannon Clarkes have no change from Christopher Rafferty but no new trainer has yet been confirmed following the departure of Collie Holmes to join the Tyrone setup.
Colin McAree and Diarmuid Scullion stay at the helm in Scotstown, Finnian Moriarty remains over Maghery and namesakes Damian and Mickey Cassidy will be again in charge of Cargin and Ederney respectively in 2021.
Jimmy Higgins completes the set of nine managers remaining in charge of the county champions by staying at the helm in Crosserlough.
Unsurprisingly it is the chasing pack that are making the changes.
In Down, Jim McCorry moves into the hotseat in Burren while Shane Mulholland, Mark Poland and Gary Boyle will hope they have the magic ticket to take a Warrenpoint team through the door they’ve been knocking on.
DJ Morgan is back with Carryduff after taking them to the final last season.
Beaten Armagh finalists Crossmaglen have given a second year to Stephen Kernan, while Monaghan native Mick O’Dowd has replaced his former team-mate Bernie Murray in Ballymacnab.
In Tyrone, Damian O’Hagan has stepped down from Coalisland and will be replaced by Brian McGuckin, who was previously in charge alongside Richie Thornton in 2014 and 2015.
Mark Harte and Adrian O’Donnell take over from Johnny McBride in Errigal Ciaran, while 2014 championship winning duo Larry Strain and Barry McGinn are back in with Omagh along with Keith Burns.
Mickey Donnelly moves from the Derry U20 gig into the Ardboe job, where Brian McIver and Brian Lavery will pair up with him, while Stevie McDonnell has added Mike McGurn to his backroom in Clonoe.
Killyclogher have Mark Henry and Brian Treacy still in charge after they took over mid-season in 2020. Henry is the principal of St Michael’s Enniskillen and Treacy is principal of the Holy Trinity primary school down the road.
Where there is no change, Nigel Seaney and Liam Donnelly remain in Trillick, and Collie McCullagh takes another year with Dromore, with Paul McIver expected to assist once more.
The most significant change in Antrim is Paddy Nugent’s return in St John’s, with John Kelly stepping down due to personal reasons. Nugent was in charge when his native Johnnies reached the final in 2017 and were beaten by Lamh Dhearg.
Damian Cassidy will aim for four-in-a-row with Cargin, with Barry Dillon (Portglenone), Martin Lynch (Lámh Dhearg) and Gerard McNulty (Creggan) lining up to try and stop them.
Former Donegal team-mates Kevin Cassidy (Gaoth Dobhair) and Rory Kavanagh (St Eunan’s) take the reins in their native clubs, but they don’t even know who or what they’re chasing yet.
Cassidy’s men will also be coached by Maxi Curran, who took St Eunan’s to their last championship in 2014.
Martin Regan and John McNulty are still waiting to lead Naomh Conaill and Kilcar respectively into battle in the delayed county final, so their futures for 2021 aren’t even on the radar yet.
Ederney have unsurprisingly retained the services of championship winning boss Mickey Cassidy, while Derrygonnelly have had to shake-up rather than change after Brendan Rasdale stepped away from their management team.
The other half of the duo, Sean Flanagan, stays in charge with Paul Greene and Michael Flynn in the backroom team.
Some of the big jobs around Ulster
Antrim
Cargin: Damian Cassidy
Creggan: Gerard McNulty
Lámh Dhearg: Martin Lynch
Portglenone: Barry Dillon
St John’s: Paddy Nugent
Armagh
Ballymacnab: Mick O’Dowd
Crossmaglen: Stephen Kernan
Maghery: Finnian Moriarty
Cavan
Cavan Gaels: Kieran Donnelly
Crosserlough: Jimmy Higgins
Derry
Ballinderry: Mickey Conlan
Glen: Malachy O’Rourke
Magherafelt: Adrian Cush
Slaughtneil: Paul Bradley
Donegal
Gaoth Dobhair: Kevin Cassidy
St Eunan’s: Rory Kavanagh
Naomh Conaill: Martin Regan
Kilcar: John McNulty
Down
Burren: Jim McCorry
Carryduff: DJ Morgan
Kilcoo: Mickey Moran
Warrenpoint: Shane Mulholland
Fermanagh
Ederney: Mickey Cassidy
Derrygonnelly: Sean Flanagan
Monaghan
Scotstown: Colin McAree
Ballybay: Jerome Johnston and Mark Doran
Clontibret: John McEntee
Tyrone
Ardboe: Mickey Donnelly
Clonoe: Stevie McDonnell
Coalisland: Brian McGuckin
Dromore: Colm McCullagh
Dungannon: Chris Rafferty
Errigal Ciaran: Mark Harte and Adrian O’Donnell
Killyclogher: Mark Henry
Omagh: Larry Strain
Trillick: Nigel Seaney and Liam Donnelly
