Finding a ‘manager’ key for Saffrons

A leading Antrim official has urged the county to appoint a manager instead of a coach to take charge of the senior hurlers.

Antrim hurlers have had a disastrous year, with the bizarre double departure of Corkman Jerry Wallace, either side of a shock Leinster championship defeat to Westmeath and eight-goal demolition by Limerick.

County secretary Frankie Quinn has admitted the Saffrons’ current plight is as bad as he can remember in more than 30 years of being involved.

Quinn also claimed that after resigning earlier this year, Wallace returned to the set-up with ‘an attitude’ which was why he was asked to leave again.

Last weekend’s embarrassing defeat to Limerick has now left Antrim vulnerable to the ultimate humiliation on Sunday — the loss of the Ulster hurling title they have held since 2001.

Win or lose against Derry, Quinn says that come Monday morning, the search will be on for a permanent manager.

“It has been a freak year and if anything, the lesson we need to learn is that appointing a coach is not good,” he said.

There is a distinct difference in appointing a coach rather than a manager. Antrim have appointed a few coaches as their manager in recent years, most notably Dinny Cahill and Jerry Wallace, with varying degrees of success.

Clearly, the Saffrons now want a manager in the mould of interim boss Jim Nelson, who has still to decide whether he wants the job on a permanent basis.

“There’s people who can handle the pressure and all the bits that go on outside of what’s happening on the pitch,” explained Quinn.

“Unfortunately, some coaches can’t, because they can only deal with how they’re coaching and training a team.

“There are hard calls that have to be made in team set-ups and if people aren’t prepared to make those calls... that’s when the pressure comes on.

“My personal opinion would be that coaches and managers are two different animals.”

Quinn insists that the managerial circus which has gone on this year, with selectors Gregory O’Kane and Terence McNaughton also walking away at various stages, has not affected the players to the degree people think.

Results, however, would suggest otherwise.

“Last year we had two heavy defeats, to Dublin in an U21 match quickly followed up by our minors getting beat by Galway, which was the worst I thought I had ever seen,” he said.

“But from a senior perspective, this has been the worst. And I’m going back as far as the early ’80s.

Antrim must try to salvage their season by beating Derry at Casement Park, a game Quinn says will be a “big test of everybody’s character”.