Gary Brennan: No job was beneath Colm Collins if it was for the benefit of Clare football

In Spanish Point, they were running a raffle draw for a car and Colm spotted his opportunity to park the car up outside the hotel, take advantage of the crowds and sell a few tickets

STALWART: Ex-Clare manager Colm Collins

When Colm Collins was appointed Clare football manager at the end of 2013, football in the county was seen by many as being at a fairly low ebb. In succeeding Mick O’Dwyer, Collins became the fifth different bainisteoir since 2007 – the year in which restructuring of the leagues condemned Clare to the bottom tier of inter-county football. 

There had been determined efforts to raise ourselves from that lowly position, but in three of the four years before Colm took charge we had failed to get over the line on the final day when promotion was in our own hands. There was also a Munster final appearance in 2012, but despite the best efforts of those involved, there were lingering issues throughout that time – players declining to play with the county, difficulty in bringing through underage players and a culture of looking at our hurling counterparts and complaining about how they were looked after compared to us.