IT was a difficult weekend for Monaghan.
The last fortnight would have been extremely emotional within both the U20 and senior squads.
Preparing for a final is supposed to be exciting and while the anxiety is always there, generally there is an extra spring in your step.
The loss of Brendan Og Duffy in a tragic car accident has robbed the Farney of a future inter-county senior star and it just felt in their game with Down in the U20 final last weekend, as the game wore on, the emotional energy expended on and off the field had taken its toll on the players.
It was difficult for the Down players and management also – God knows, as a county, we have been waiting on some underage success for some time now and the fact that Down could win an U20 title in such difficult circumstances is worth savouring.
I missed out on making the 1999 minor winning squad, I was vertically challenged at the time and while I had another year in the minors, I felt I should have been there despite everything.
I watched on, devastated to be honest, while many of my friends lit up Croke Park in September, had celebratory dinners to attend and of course, got all the girls!
I think that experience scarred me.
It drove me obsessively, consciously and subconsciously. I vowed to never be ignored or excluded from further success in Down again.
I lived the fear of becoming a nothing, a nobody, being dropped, mediocre.
I wasn’t going to be defined by those who go around and pity for themselves.
Conor Laverty is similar in many ways as a player.
Physically, I was a late developer and almost at 18, made some quick vertical gains that came with a bit of back pain along with it.
Laverty was always ‘slight’, however, what he conceded in terms of physicality, he more than made up for in levels of commitment, heart and guile on the field.
Within the senior inter-county team, he had to deal with being overlooked by a number of senior managers.
Eventually it was James McCartan who got the best out of Conor Laverty and under his tenure, his club Kilcoo became a dominant force in Down football and at inter-county level, he too became a key part of the first 15.
I always knew Conor would be coach and manager, when we spoke of how the game should be played, there was a purity and practicality to the conversations.
You could tell that he focused on maximising one’s own attributes and this led to a non-drinking, monastic type approach to club first, then county.
My club would not have experienced playing Kilcoo largely because the rivalry wasn’t there as we were not a threat to their domination.
However, within Down, other clubs had axes to grind and intentionally or otherwise, this does spill into inter-county panels.
It happens in every county and you hear of the Crossmaglen-Armagh divide and Slaughneil-Derry tension.
Jim McCorry appointed Conor as captain of Down – McCorry was looking to recreate the relationship he enjoyed with Laverty at club level with Kilcoo.
Laverty was a disciple - and loyalty, leadership and dedication were key components of this.
As both found out, this perhaps didn’t work out the way they envisaged and McCorry ultimately had to walk away.
Conor Laverty never played for Down again either.
This only served to re-focus his attentions on Kilcoo and they had been building toward an assault on an Ulster club title and All-Ireland.
They were a kick of the ball away from the ultimate prize pre-COVID.
Conor Laverty will become Down senior manager in the future.
The question will be about timing.
Personally, with the success of an Ulster title behind him, so early in his tenure as U20 manager, you could not ask for a better start.
Should he be catapulted into the senior job for a three-year term (which is standard at that level) and it isn’t a smooth run, what direction do the clubs of Down take?
Sack or go again?
In some people’s eye’s, Conor Laverty and his management team are the clear front-runners for the senior job.
It would be almost impossible to turn down or not feel the urge to go for it.
However, if I were in his shoes, I would take my time and build on his recent success and, let’s face it, the pressure of a senior inter-county job, as his previous mentor Jim McCorry to testify to, is a whole different ball game.
A long-term relationship or take the risk and double down on the senior job.
The committee put together to seek out the new senior manager are respected and very knowledgeable.
It is not easy to be assigned with their task either.
Trust me, it has caused me a few sleepless nights over the years when I was asked to be that person three years ago.
With the planning permission granted for a new Centre of Excellence in Ballykinlar approved last week, perhaps the bleakness of the 16-point hammering to Donegal will be viewed as another opportunity to formulate something long-term to develop better players in Down, now that the tangible buildings will be there.
We have a habit of blaming all our woes solely on the door of the manager at any given time and for many years now have refused to go any deeper than that.
A senior manager will have a three-year window to build progress and some may see that as an opportunity.
However, from the outside, Conor Laverty looks to be a Down manager and coach in waiting and that may hinder a candidate internally and externally in seeking out the position as senior boss.
Hypothetically, internally the only obvious candidate is Conor and I still think as pointed out it is too early.
Therefore, an external choice appears more pragmatic, someone who has a record of improving teams and willing not view silverware as the barometer.
Does Mickey Moran have another dance in him?
Would John McEntee be willing to cross that divide into Down?
Malachy O’Rourke has had success in every county team he managed.
Who knows but, with a positive hat on, I think the future looks a bit brighter.
