Latest news with #Ballaghaderreen
The Irish Sun
a day ago
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Inside Andy Moran's life from wife and children to day job as he's set to be named Mayo GAA manager
He's already secured two big name assistants MOR MAYO Inside Andy Moran's life from wife and children to day job as he's set to be named Mayo GAA manager ANDY Moran is on the cusp of being appointed manager of Mayo's senior men's footballers after being proposed by the county board. Monday's noteworthy update virtually guarantees it will be the 41-year-old who succeeds Kevin McStay after seeing off competition from Tony McEntee. 7 He's been married to other half Jennifer Drake since 2012 Credit: @andypmoran 7 They have a son named Ollie as well as a daughter called Charlotte Credit: @andypmoran 7 Charlotte memorably starred in this award-winning photo after the 2016 All-Ireland final 7 This won't be his first role as a senior inter-county boss While arguably a bit early for him to rise to his dream job, the 2017 Footballer of the Year has carved out a coaching CV worthy of being given his chance to lead the county. He managed Leitrim for three seasons from 2021. That stint didn't all go according to plan as they suffered a stunning loss to New York in the 2023 Connacht Championship. However, he did showcase the ability to bounce back from adversity in 2024 when he got them promoted from Division 4 of the National Football League. Moran opted to leave the post at the end of that campaign and ended up doing a year as part of Gabriel Bannigan's backroom team. His first coaching inroads had come with the Mayo Under-20s before he took joint-charge of his club Ballaghaderreen with Mike Solan prior to their 2021 campaign. WHAT IS ANDY MORAN'S JOB? He's owned a gym since 2015. There's now two locations in Claremorris as well as Castlebar. You can check out The Movement Gyms' Instagram page here. His college background comprises an undergrad in Business and Recreation from Sligo IT between 2003-2007 followed by an Msc in Marketing and Entrepreneurship from Ulster University which he completed in 2008. IS HE MARRIED? The former sharpshooter has been married to long-term partner Jennifer since 2012. They tied the knot in their hometown of Ballaghaderreen which is actually in county Roscommon despite Andy being a legend of the Green and Red. TJ Reid and wife Niamh de Brun's gorgeous pregnancy reveal In excess of 300 guests watched on as their nuptials were held at Kilronan Castle. PLAYING HONOURS The full-forward called time on his inter-county playing career in 2019. Among the honours he earned along the way were eight Connacht championship medals, two NFL Division 1 titles and two All-Stars to go with his Footballer of the Year gong. 7 This season saw him work under Farney chief Gabriel Bannigan 7 He released his autobiography in 2021 Credit: @andypmoran 7 Moran holds the unfortunate record of most All-Ireland finals played (six) without having won one In his Sligo IT days he won three Sigerson Cups while he has two county championships with Ballaghaderreen. COUNTY BACKING Upon Monday's news that he is to be put forward for ratification at the next meeting of the Mayo county board a spokesperson gave him a glowing endorsement. They said: 'Andy Moran and his backroom team bring a wealth of experience. 'Their combined knowledge, leadership and proven track records will be invaluable in driving the continued development and success of Mayo football.' He will be aided by two high-profile backroom members in Colm Boyle and Paddy Tally - who was Derry's manager up until last month.
Irish Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Inside Andy Moran's family life including wife and children ahead of Mayo job
One of Mayo's most beloved players, Andy Moran, will take charge of his county for the 2026 after being proposed as manager. Moran was undoubtedly the most popular Mayo player of the 2000s and 2010s, and his career saw him win a Footballer of the Year Award. Since retiring, Moran took over the Leitrim footballers before joining the Monaghan coaching ticket for the 2025 season. Below, we have a quick look at Moran's family life and GAA career. Where is he from, and what age is he? Born in 1983, Andy Moran is from Ballaghaderreen in Roscommon; however, the GAA club competes in Mayo. Playing Career Moran undoubtedly goes down as one of Mayo's all-time greats having made his debut for the county in 2004 and retired in 2019. In that time, Moran won two All-Star Awards and was named Footballer of the Year in 2017 after finishing the Championship as top scorer from play. He won his other All-Star in 2011. By the time he hung up the boots in 2019, Moran won eight Connacht titles as well as two League titles. He played in six All-Ireland finals during his time with Mayo. He will be hoping to be the first man to bring Sam Maguire back to Mayo since 1951/ Coaching Career Moran was straight into coaching after retirement and went in with the Mayo Under-20 teams in Covid before taking over Ballaghaderreen the following year. He would get his first big chance when he coached Leitrim Footballers between 2022 and 2024. The county narrowly missed out on promotion from Division Three in 2023 before promotion the following year. He was part of the Monaghan coaching ticket for 2025 with the Farney progressing to the All-Ireland Quarter-Finals. Family Life Moran tied the knot with long-term partner Heniffer in 2012, and the couple has two children together, Ollie and Charlotte.
RTÉ News
2 days ago
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Andy Moran set to take the reins as new Mayo manager
Andy Moran is set to be the new manager of the Mayo senior footballers, with the county board to ratify the appointment of the Ballaghaderreen clubman at its next meeting. Moran takes over from Kevin McStay, whose three years at the helm came to an end after the green and red were knocked out of this year's championship at the All-Ireland group stage. The new management ticket will include former Mayo player Colm Boyle and Paddy Tally, who recently managed Derry.
Irish Times
02-08-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Remembering John O'Mahony and his football legacy
One of the most poignant aspects of John O'Mahony's death 13 months ago was the enthusiasm with which he had been preparing for the Ballaghaderreen Arts Festival GAA night. It was to be an interview, conducted by O'Mahony's long-time friend Tommie Gorman with Jim Gavin , about managing Dublin and his then work-in-progress with the Football Review Committee . 'John was doing it on behalf of the club [Ballaghaderreen GAA] and he came up with Jim Gavin, who said he'd be delighted to do it,' recalls his wife, Ger. 'Tommie was going to be in France but he said, 'absolutely I will be coming home to do that'.' Both men went into hospital around June. Gorman was to have a routine operation as part of his ongoing cancer treatment. His friend, who had also been treated for the disease, had to go in to deal with an associated issue. They had targeted the GAA night as the date by which they would be recovered and looked forward to welcoming Gavin. READ MORE Tommie Gorman died on June 25th and Ger O'Mahony remembers John, who had been quite unwell at that point, actually rallied. 'John had been very sick for two weeks but after Tommy died, in the next 10 days, he improved greatly and they were talking in the hospital about him coming out. He was on the phone night, noon and morning talking to people and the nurses used to say, 'oh we knew he had improved because that phone was burning up in the room'.' Seán O'Rourke was lined up to interview Gavin and everything was set but John O'Mahony suddenly relapsed and died on July 6th. John O'Mahony is remembered at Croke Park ahead of the All-Ireland semi-final between Donegal and Galway on July 14th. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho There was a shocked outpouring from the worlds of the GAA and politics at the death of an All-Ireland winning manager, who had been involved in so many landmark breakthroughs for Connacht counties, and a Fine Gael TD and senator for more than a decade. Ballaghderreen wanted this year's GAA night to reflect on his lifelong involvement with the game. The venue is St Nathy's College, across the road from the O'Mahony's, where he taught for many years. John and Ger's daughter Rhona O'Mahony, whose husband Padraic's business McKeever Sports is the GAA night sponsor, explains how the event came about. 'The club were running it and wanted to do it in honour of Daddy. They approached us. So, as a family we all got together and we were wondering about the theme, something to honour him but also something that he would enjoy himself: not all about him – he'd have hated that – but the future of football.' In the eyes of many, his greatest achievement was managing Leitrim to only their second Connacht title in 1994. The least populous county in Ireland went to Croke Park that August to play Dublin in an All-Ireland semi-final. Captaining the team was Declan Darcy, a Dubliner whose father Frank was from Aughawillan. He would later play for Dublin and went on to become Jim Gavin's right-hand man as part of the management that guided the county to the historic 2019 five-in-a-row. He is one of the many football personalities who will address the event, including Galway manager Pádraic Joyce, who won two All-Irelands with O'Mahony and Kieran McGeeney, manager of the Armagh team which won last year's All-Ireland. John O'Mahony at a Division 1 National League game in 2010, his last season as Mayo manager. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho 'John had an aura,' says Darcy. 'When you looked at him, he was tough, he was resilient, he was professional and there was a confidence about him. I've said this before – you can do all the coaching courses you want but they won't confer that aura to come into a room and just convince people that what you say is going to happen today. 'That's a gift, and John had that gift.' The thoroughness of his preparations was another calling card, the sense that his players had that everything possible was being done, down to the early adopter move to bring in performance coach Bill Cogan. After a tournament match, Leitrim players watched as their hosts got fed steaks and just as they were licking their lips in anticipation, trays of chicken came out for them. Regardless of dietary science, John O'Mahony took umbrage at the discrimination against his team. 'He got really annoyed by it,' says Darcy, 'simply because we weren't getting fair treatment and John always stood up for us. He gave us everything that we wanted and needed to be the best, and to confront that inferiority complex thing.' Creating confidence in teams is not straightforward. Successful counties have that tradition and even those who have known some success have a reassurance that it can be done, but for counties like Leitrim, other methods are needed, according to Darcy. John O'Mahony at an second round All-Ireland SFC fixture between Galway and Waterford in 2013. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho 'What other ways can you give them that belief? Where you can get them collectively strong, and incredibly fit and tough, is from the mental toughness necessary to do the training. It galvanised the group. 'Bringing us to Strand Hill, and running us on the sand dunes – it was horrific stuff! But it galvanised us and developed the mental toughness. You knew there was very few teams doing this, like we were doing it. It was a smart strategy by John to create that confidence.' Two years ago, Ger O'Mahony remembers travelling with her husband for a round of check-ups in Dublin and Ballinasloe. Once he was finished, John told her he had to drop in somewhere for a couple of minutes for an interview. 'It actually took four hours,' she remembers. The appointment was filming for Hell for Leather, RTÉ's lavish football documentary that screened in June and July and featured among others, John. 'On the weekend of his anniversary Mass, I was really tired on the Monday night and I said I'm not watching it tonight. I'll watch it on Tuesday on playback and then I just went in for a minute. 'Oh my God, that was the Galway one and there he was. You know, it was like balm. It didn't upset me, it was like balm for my soul, it really was. You would be a little bit sad of course yeah, but it was magnificent.' 'A Life Lived on the Line' – reflecting on the legacy of John O'Mahony and the future of Gaelic football, hosted by Marty Morrissey, takes place in St Nathy's College, Ballaghaderreen on Friday, August 8th. Speakers include Pádraic Joyce, Kieran McGeeney, Declan Darcy, Martin Carney, Fergal O'Donnell, John Maher, Tommy Rooney and Marc Ó Sé. All tickets for the event have been sold.
Irish Independent
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Legacy of John O'Mahony to be remembered at star-studded event in Ballaghaderreen
On Friday, August 8, RTÉ broadcaster Marty Morrisey will host 'A Life Lived On The Line' in the company of Galway senior football manager Pádraic Joyce; Armagh senior football manager Kieran McGeeney; former Roscommon senior football captain and manager, Fergal O'Donnell; former Leitrim footballer Declan Darcy; former Kerry footballer Marc Ó Sé; former Mayo and Donegal footballer Martin Carney; current Galway footballer John Maher; current Mayo and Ballaghaderreen footballer, David McBrien and Newstalk broadcaster Tommy Rooney. The evening will take place in St Nathy's College in Ballaghaderreen, the secondary school where Mr O'Mahony taught for many years and received his secondary education. The Kilmovee native guided Mayo and Leitrim to Connacht titles and Galway to two All-Ireland titles across an illustrious managerial career that spanned several decades. He was mourned across Connacht and further afield when he passed away last year at the age of 71 following an illness. Large crowds gathered in Ballaghaderreen for his funeral, where he was given a guard of honour by the local GAA club. Ballaghaderreen wore special commemorative jerseys in that year's senior football championship in his honour. In recent times, the former Fine Gael TD was featured in RTÉ's 'Hell For Leather', a documentary on the history of Gaelic football which was recorded before his passing. 'A Life Lived On The Line' takes place as part of the Ballaghaderreen Arts Festival, which takes place between August 2 and August 10.
