GAA FOOTBALL MANAGERS:PAT GILROY will be unveiled as the Dublin football manager at noon tomorrow in Parnell Park. The county board secretary, John Costello, and chairman Gerry Harrington - after consulting such luminaries within the capital's GAA scene as Kevin Heffernan and Dr Pat O'Neill - are to put Gilroy's name before the county board delegates for ratification at a specially-convened meeting tonight.
Mickey Whelan is to be included on the management ticket as team trainer, completing a neat full circle since his acrimonious departure as Dublin manager midway through the 1999 league campaign, a position he held since replacing O'Neill in 1996.
Whelan (69) was Dublin minor coach when they reached the AllIreland final in 2003 and returned to the limelight last season guiding St Vincent's to the county, Leinster and All-Ireland titles.
Gilroy featured on that team, initially as an impact substitute but eventually becoming the starting full forward in the March decider against Cork champions Nemo Rangers.
The 36-year-old managing director of Dalkia Ireland, an environmental services company, has decent, if unheralded pedigree as a player having featured off the bench in the 1995 All-Ireland final victory over Tyrone - the last time the Sam Maguire Cup resided in Dublin.
He also came to prominence last year off the football pitch when included in a three-man shortlist to replace Liam Mulvihill as the director general of the GAA.
Although the position eventually went to Paraic Duffy, a member of the interview panel noted Gilroy's "sharp intellect" to the extent they considered overlooking his obvious lack of experience regarding the association's internal workings, in contrast to the long-serving administrative talents of Duffy.
The partnership with Whelan appears to bring complementary positives; Gilroy, a natural leader, communicator and clearly ambitious, while Whelan brings a vastly experienced (he won All-Ireland medals in 1958 and 1963) coaching background that even crosses into collegiate soccer in America.
The Dublin panel are to switch their permanent training base from Artane to Dublin City University in Glasnevin, a familiar environment for the panel anyway due to previous conditioning work with Prof Niall Moyna - a senior lecturer on campus in exercise physiology.
Whelan, Gilroy and Moyna also made up this year's DCU Sigerson Cup management team.
Brian Mullins had been the initial favourite to land the position and perhaps redirect the training base to University College Dublin, where he is head of sport while other members of the 1995 team, Mick Deegan and Paul Bealin, also threw their hat into the ring but the St Vincent's combination has proved the preferred option for Costello's selection committee.
The new management team can get right down to business on Monday evening with a host of current and prospective Dublin players on show in Parnell Park as defending champions St Vincent's face Kilmacud Crokes and Oliver Plunketts/Eoghan Ruadh meet Ballymun Kickhams in the county semi-finals.
On the Galway hurling front, the fate of Ger Loughnane will be revealed this evening as delegates vote to ratify or reject him for a third season in charge.
If Loughnane is not retained, or decides to withdraw, Michael Bond or a joint ticket of Anthony Cunningham and Jimmy Heverin will contest for the managerial position. Bond would include Joe Cooney, Steve Mahon and Michael Coleman as his selectors.
Damien Cassidy has replaced Paddy Crozier as Derry football manager. An All-Ireland winner with the county in 1993, Cassidy was previously a coach under the late Eamonn Coleman at Cavan and Derry.
Martin McConnell, Brendan McCrory and former Antrim footballer Kevin Madden make up the backroom team.
