Shane McEntee condemns abuse of his father Andy as Meath manager

Meath footballer Shane McEntee has denied claims the Meath County Board paid for his flights home from a tour of duty in Mali ahead of the Leinster semi-final against Dublin

Former Meath manager Andy McEntee ©INPHO/Lorraine O’Sullivan

Meath footballer Shane McEntee has denied claims the Meath County Board paid for his flights home from a Defence Forces tour of duty in Mali ahead of the county’s Leinster semi-final against Dublin last month.

In a now deleted tweet, McEntee - the son of recently departed Meath manager Andy - took to social media to state that it was he, and not the Meath County Board, who had paid for the €1,000 flights.

It was reported in March that the Meath captain was to miss the rest of the inter-county season because of a tour of duty with the Irish Defence Forces in Mali, but he returned home in May and was introduced as a sub during the county’s Leinster semi-final hammering at the hands of Dublin.

McEntee played no part in Saturday’s first-round qualifier defeat away to Clare, a two-point loss that ended the county’s involvement in the All-Ireland series.

In the same deleted tweet, Shane McEntee also revealed the extent of the abuse his father had been subjected to during his six-year tenure as Meath manager, which included letters being sent to the family home.

“Flights cost €1k and I paid for them. I then paid another €500 to change it and make an extra training,” McEntee tweeted, in response to an accusation that the county board had covered the cost of his flights home from Mali.

“Online abuse, letters to the house. You can put yourself forward for these roles or you can tweet about it, one takes a bit more conviction.” 

Former Fermanagh and Monaghan boss Malachy O'Rourke is among the early favourites to succeed Andy McEntee.