Maughan the man for Roscommon

Former Mayo, Clare and Fermanagh boss John Maughan was ratified as the new manager of the Roscommon senior footballers at a county board meeting last night.

Maughan, who previously admitted that he would never manage any other Connacht county than his native Mayo, has been handed a two-year term to turn around the fortunes of the Rossies.

2005 was a turbulent year for Roscommon both on and off the field. First, Tommy Carr stepped down in March as the county's National League campaign ended in relegation to Division Two.

Val Daly then stepped into the breach but had little luck as Roscommon could only muster a single win - May's 0-12 to 1-8 victory over London in Ruislip - in the Championship.

Losses to Mayo and then Louth in the second round of the All-Ireland qualifiers saw their campaign come to a disappointing end.

A crippling debt of €1.34m also emerged for the Roscommon county board, but Castlerea businessman John Murphy has since come to the rescue with a €1m interest-free loan.

Maughan, who will be assisted in his new role by former county player Eamon McManus snr, quit as Mayo manager in August following their All-Ireland SFC semi-final defeat by Kerry.