Oisín McConville: 'I'm glad now I didn't walk away from it'

Wicklow boss Oisín McConville celebrates. Pic: James Lawlor/Inpho

This time last year, an article appeared in a western newspaper referring to Oisín McConville as 'the frontrunner by some distance' to become the next Mayo manager.

Around the same time, McConville's name was also strongly linked with the Louth vacancy, following Ger Brennan's exit.

The Crossmaglen man stuck with Wicklow, of course, and all three counties will be involved in season-defining Croke Park encounters this Saturday.

McConville's Wicklow will face Down in the Tailteann Cup final, followed by the novel meeting of Louth and Mayo in the last four of the All-Ireland SFC race.

So could McConville have ended up swapping the earlier game this Saturday for the later one?

"As far as going somewhere else, that was never on the agenda," clarified McConville, a married father of three. "Once I cleared things at home, and had a meeting with the county board, we managed to turn a lot of it around very quickly, and we had to because we felt the work on what was going to happen this year would have to start immediately.

"They were the things going through my head at that time. When you invest three years in something and you feel you're not very far away from achieving it, it's very difficult to walk away from it. I'm glad now I didn't walk away from it.

"The travel and everything else, it's tight going at times, and it's tight on people at home, but we've managed to make the best of it."

Wicklow have benefited from another season under the 2002 All-Ireland winner after making it to the Tailteann decider, following quarter-final (2024) and semi-final (2025) appearances.

But even if they beat Down, the 2024 champions, to secure a golden ticket to next year's Sam Maguire Cup race, they still won't have achieved their main goal for the 2026 season.

"I will hold my hand up and admit that, at the start of the year, our number one aim was promotion," said McConville, whose side missed out on promotion from Division 4 following a one-point comeback win for Longford in Round 7. "But this certainly feels significant."

A day after the Tailteann decider, Dublin will take on Kerry in a blockbuster All-Ireland semi-final tie. 

Oisín McConville pictured today for AIB ahead of the Tailteann Cup Final between Wicklow and Down this Saturday, July 11th at 3:30pm. Pic: Dan Sheridan

That's the same Dublin team that most felt Wicklow should have defeated in the Leinster SFC in Aughrim.

"We said after the Dublin game that the potential was there for us to go and win it (the Tailteann Cup) and we spoke openly about that," continued McConville. "That is probably something that has us where we are today.

"Our last four performances, bar the Laois game, have been pretty good. Regardless of even if they hadn't been, we're getting results and that's a turnaround from where we were.

"We're probably past the stage now after four years together where we're happy about somebody saying to us, 'Yeah, you lost but you did great'. We're probably past that stage now, we've moved into a stage where we need to be winning things."

Tony McEntee was also linked with the Louth and Mayo vacancies last summer and will, ironically, face McConville this weekend, as a Down coach under Conor Laverty. 

McEntee and McConville are former Crossmaglen and Armagh playing colleagues, friends since childhood.

"We met each other on Monday night actually," said McConville. "I was taking the wee fella to training. But yeah, there's been very little contact, and there will be very little contact, until after Saturday. I'll meet up with him maybe next week or something. He's in enemy territory at the moment so we'll leave it alone."

McConville reported a clean bill of health for the decider though Wicklow are still 3/1 outsiders against a Down team that beat Donegal in Ulster.

"They've played at a level above us all year and will be going into Division 2 next year," he said. "We'll be still in Division 4. So our performance has to improve.

"They also have a couple of outstanding individuals. A lot of people probably look past the impact that their goalkeeper has had. He's been brilliant for them since he came in, Ronan Burns. And then the obvious ones are Murdock and Guinness and Havern, and Eamonn Brown has given them a different dimension."