Kiely shocked as Déise tenure ended

JOHN KIELY last night expressed surprise and disappointment at not being re-appointed as Waterford senior football manager.

Kiely, who helped mastermind the county’s first Munster SFC victory in 19 years against Clare in 2007, held the post for five years.

Ironically, 2009 was one of the most successful of his term, winning six competitive games between the McGrath Cup and the National Football League while the county narrowly missed out on promotion from NFL Division Four.

Kiely last night said: “All my life I was never a bitter man pointing fingers of blame at people. I am always looking on the bright side of things and of life.

“I think we have won more games in the last two years than Waterford did in the previous 30.

“But I am very disappointed by this. I am going to miss it. I enjoyed every minute of it. But I am a member of the GAA family. And I am going to Croke Park on Sunday. I will still enjoy football and will always support Waterford.

“I couldn’t have worked with better players or a backroom team. In the course of my time we got seven Waterford men onto the Munster team to play in the Railway Cup. All the nice people I have meet from all over Ireland – that is what the GAA is all about.

“It is not about the people making decisions behind your back.”

He continued: “There is a committee here in Waterford who appoint the management teams on a year to year basis.

“However, we were not approached to meet with that committee to discuss our future or their concerns.

“But you know what the GAA is like. I knew for a couple of weeks that they were looking for a change but no one said anything officially. Maybe the fact that I was against the seeded draw might have counted against me.”

Kiely heaped praise on his management team of Michael O’Loughlin, Ger Power, Paul McLaughlin, Tom Condon along with the panel of players.

“We put our stamp on the players, played a particular brand of football and raised the profile of the game in Waterford. The work that the lads with me put in was phenomenal. We were all hard working fellas who gave our all for the cause.”

When asked about his future in the game, Kiely replied: “I don’t have one?”

However, he vowed he would never take a job managing another county.

County board PRO Joe Cleary said: “He was a man who gave his whole life to promoting the game in our county, and he is taking his departure with the sincere thanks and appreciation of everyone connected with the game in Waterford ringing in his ears.”

Meanwhile, one of the consequences of last weekend’s drawn Waterford SHC quarter-final between De La Salle and Ballygunner is a one-week deferral of the county final which was scheduled for October 4. With the replay of the De La Salle/Ballygunner tie going ahead at Fraher Field, Dungavan on Saturday (5.15pm), the two semi-finals will be played eight days later on September 27.

“If the original date for the final was to stand that would have given the winners of these games just a one week break and we felt that would be unfair,” Cleary said.

Meanwhile, Derry GAA chiefs look set to investigate a brawl which broke out seconds after Sunday’s county football semi-final between Loup and Bellaghy.

County PRO Sean Gunning said: “Nothing will happen until the referee’s report is received.”