HE may be plotting ways to curtail his influence at Pairc Esler tonight, but Ciaran McBride has no doubt that Conor Laverty is the right man to bring back better days to Down.
The Kilcoo stalwart was confirmed as James McCartan’s successor earlier this month, taking over the Mournemen at a low ebb after relegation to Division Three of the National League was followed by Championship defeats to Monaghan and Cavan.
Laverty is expected to start against McBride’s Clonduff in tonight’s Down championship clash with the Magpies at Pairc Esler, but the former Tyrone forward believes the 36-year-old has the tools at his disposal, and the know-how, to make the kind of impact needed.
“I think it was the right appointment, and he has the right team in Deccy [Morgan] and Marty [Clarke] with him. They did well at U20 level and they deserve their opportunity,” said McBride.
“I’m also a fan of ‘Wee James’, I couldn’t say enough about him personally. This year, you could feel people were very exasperated by the whole thing. I love Down football, and Down needs to awaken from the slumber of the last number of years – because it’s not just last year.
“They need to get the thing bottomed out, they need a lot of buy-in from a lot of people, whether it’s clubs, schools, the county board, players… Down are not a bad team. They’re not.”
McBride is in his second year at the helm with Clonduff, where he has been working with one of the top forwards in the county in Barry O’Hagan.
And, from what he has seen working within the county, McBride insists Down have the quality to re-emerge as a force to be reckoned with.
“I’m always looking through a forward’s eyes, and I have seen some unbelievable forwards in this county - players I would love to see in a Tyrone jersey.
“Down have the firepower, what they need now is somebody like Conor who is going to settle the thing down, get the structures in place, standards in place and get the players to buy into that.
“When you’re low, it’s not an easy job. Armagh have moved forward, Derry have moved forward, Down need to be back in that mix again, they need to get their asses into Division Two, solve whatever problems have to be solved, park whatever egos there are and get down to hard work.
“The firepower is there, it’s just going to take a wee while. I said it before he was even appointed, Conor is the right man at the right time. I hope it goes well for the boys, I really do.”
Barry O’Hagan is far from the only Clonduff man to have put his shoulder to the Down wheel in recent years, with the likes of Darren O’Hagan, Aidan Carr and Arthur McConville giving years of service for club and county.
And, as the Hilltown men approach 22 years without getting their hands on the Frank O’Hare Cup, McBride would love nothing more than to bring that run to an end.
“It’s a stat that I don’t like, and the Clonduff people don’t like it either.
“There’s a group of lads who have played for Clonduff for so long, that’s probably why they’re motivated to come back out again. A lot of those boys have carried niggles and injuries the last three or four years, have gone to the well when the well was dry and they’re still coming back to it.
“But they are very motivated every year to get back out and make a challenge for it. Some of them are the wrong side of 30, but they have been a great support to me and it would be a travesty if Clonduff were to win a championship and those boys weren’t involved.”
