A PROMINENT former Armagh player has called on the Orchard county board to “be ruthless and make a change at the top” by getting rid of manager Kieran McGeeney.
In a letter to the Irish News, the former Orchard star, who did not wish to be named, said that while McGeeney had been “a great leader” as a player, his loyalty to those in the current Armagh setup had become a fault.
“It can be hard to put your finger on what exactly has gone wrong but one thing is clear, his time has run out,” said the letter.
“At the time of his appointment many thought Geezer would use the opportunity to bring in a new backroom team. He didn’t. It seems he is a seriously loyal man but his tenure shows he has been loyal to a fault.
“Had he freshened up his support staff maybe he would have had success at an earlier stage, maybe a coach and a fitness expert whom the players respected, but he stuck with the people he trusted.
“He also laboured with players who were loyal to him, putting them on before those who were better than they were. It was only when us supporters were roaring on to the pitch that he reluctantly dropped them. This loyalty served neither him nor the players.”
The former player also hit out at Geezer’s post-match interview following the weekend’s narrow defeat in Mayo, where McGeeney questioned the referee’s decision to only add four minutes of stoppage time at the end of the game.
Maurice Deegan’s performance has been a major talking point across the board since last Saturday, but the former player believes blaming referees has been an ongoing narrative of McGeeney’s reign.
“The post-match interview to Sky Sports was most revealing. What grinds me down is the hard luck stories.
“’Oh the referee was against us’, ‘we couldn’t buy a free’, etc, as if it the game wasn’t riddled with mistakes on and off the pitch.
“Would it not have been better to push up on the Mayo kickouts when we had them on the rack? Or to change up the system of play to keep Mayo thinking, rather than counting the number of times that the referee got it wrong?”
A role as a director of football would have been more suitable for McGeeney, believes the ex-Orchard star.
“The penny finally dropped with me when in that Sky interview ‘Geezer’ said the county board are ‘in the black’ now and he went on to talk about a failed development structure which has only recently undergone a restructuring.
“When have you ever heard of a manager talking about the county’s finances as if it was a priority for them? This statement epitomises what has been Geezers strengths within his time as senior manager.
“His strengths have been in the role of football director where he has been involved in restructuring the county board, the development squads, the finances, and so on.
“His one glaring omission has been a lack of absolute focus on the senior team, which I feel should have been his only priority.
“The county board need to be mature about the next decision they make. Don’t hide behind loyalty or suggest that the clubs make the final call; it is the county board that makes the recommendation.
“Time to be ruthless and to make a change at the top. This team is capable of winning if they are properly guided.
“I want Armagh to be successful in 2020, not to be more of the same.”
