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Irish Examiner
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
How Robbie Brennan's slick man-management awakened the Meath sleeping giant
Tomas Ó Sé was thinking about Meath, and how they've gone from one end of the zeroes/heroes spectrum to the other in a matter of months, and found himself flummoxed. "I tried to figure it out during the week, I don't know what's gone on in Meath," said Ó Sé. "How can they suddenly be properly and really deserving of being in an All-Ireland semi-final? "Everyone has been judging Meath on the last number of years, and what's been there for the last number of years, and there has been nothing in terms of what we're seeing right now." The Kerry man probably doesn't need to look a whole pile further than Robbie Brennan for his answer. It was new manager Brennan that convinced Bryan Menton to come out of retirement, having not played since 2022. Seamus Lavin was even longer away, since 2021, yet both have started all 15 of Meath's League and Championship games this year. Jack Flynn, Menton's midfield partner all year until a recent injury, is in a similar boat, coaxed back after missing much of 2024. Then there's Sean Rafferty, arguably the Meath player most likely to end the county's 17-year wait for an All-Star. He hadn't played a League or Championship game before Brennan came in but has started 14 of the 15 games. Conor Duke's stats are exactly the same as Rafferty's. Ruairí Kinsella didn't start a Championship game for Meath last year either but has lined out in all eight this year. The list goes on. It all comes back to Brennan and his slick man management. "I've been living in Meath a long time and I've played and was lucky enough to win a championship in Meath," said the Dunboyne resident. "So with all of that going on, and I'd be at so many of the matches watching the games, whether Dunboyne were in them or not, I certainly knew the talent was there and I think that was probably the most exciting part of it. "It was a case of, could you get in and awaken the sleeping giant, and so far we have." Brennan rose to national prominence for his work with Kilmacud Crokes, in Dublin, guiding them to county, provincial and national successes. But as the son of a Meath man from Kilberry, just north of Navan, he was on his father Paddy's shoulders for the Centenary Cup success of 1984, the first trophy won in the Sean Boylan era. The family's decision to relocate to south Dublin for work purposes was what brought him to the capital, and Crokes, before Brennan U-turned when older, marrying Liz Gallagher, the sister of former Meath goalkeeper David Gallagher, and settling in Dunboyne. Asked if he sees himself as a Meath man or a Dub, Brennan shot back instantly: "Meath." Supporting Dublin wasn't really an option. "It was drilled into me, so it was never any other way," he said of his Meath-ness. "There were a lot of dark days then when you're living in Dublin, you're involved in Kilmacud, and Meath aren't winning and Dublin are starting to win and you're having to go back to the clubhouse and stuff like that. "I'm living in Dunboyne for 20-odd years so I'm more Meath now if there was ever any doubt. The 7/2 for the Dublin job isn't a good price I'd say looking at it!" Brennan has a long way to go to enjoy the same legendary status within Meath as Dunboyne neighbour Boylan but he may just be getting there. In any other year, beating Dublin, Kerry, Cork and Galway in the Championship would probably have already snagged the Sam Maguire Cup. But they've still got Donegal to go on Sunday. Perhaps they'll get a crack at Kerry or Tyrone then after that. Brennan's approach has been a simple one - let the players express themselves. Sure, Meath have got praise for their tactical acumen this year but it was probably more insightful that he described Jordan Morris losing the ball in attack against Galway last time as a 'creative turnover'. Those are always allowed, even encouraged. "What do we say? The more you control, the less you can create. It's that kind of approach," said Brennan. "They're not spoon-fed. It's exactly what we did in Kilmacud, we just allowed the leaders to take over and we let the group kind of develop. "It's happened way quicker (in Meath) than even I thought it might but there's some exceptional leaders in it, not just obviously Eoghan (Frayne) and Ciaran (Caulfield) as captain and vice-captain. They're all grabbing it with both hands." Despite it all, they'll be written off by pretty much everybody when the ball is thrown in tomorrow. "We'll still come in as underdogs and that's good for us," said Brennan. "Donegal are probably one of, if not the favourites for the Championship, and have been for a long time. I think that'll suit us fine coming in again. We don't have to change much."
Irish Times
19-06-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
Dublin school cancels ‘Prayer for Palestine Day' amid ‘differing opinions'
A primary school, which cancelled a planned 'Prayer for Palestine Day' this week after some parents raised concerns, has said it was obliged to accommodate 'differing opinions' on the initiative. Mount Anville Primary School, in the Kilmacud/Stillorgan area of south Dublin , sent a letter to parents on Monday outlining its plans. It was intended to educate pupils on Palestinian culture in the hope of raising awareness of the 'unprecedented hardship and starvation' facing children in Gaza. However, a cancellation letter was issued the next day by the school's board of management in order to ensure the event would not be 'misconstrued or politicised in any manner'. READ MORE In the initial letter, school principal Angela Munro, said: 'Each class will engage in activities suitable to their age and stage to raise awareness of Palestine.' Resources were prepared by the school's teachers with a focus on Palestinian culture, art, music, food, and geography. Ms Munro cited the school's Sacred Heart ethos 'of social awareness that impels us to action, reaching out in compassion and solidarity with the innocent children of Gaza who are suffering unprecedented hardship and starvation'. She said the school community would use the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 'as our guide' when praying for the children of Palestine during an assembly. She added that they would be availing of resources provided by the Ombudsman for Children's Office in Dublin. However, on Tuesday, the board of management wrote to parents, informing them that 'the proposed Prayer for Palestine Day has raised concerns among some members of our school community'. 'In order to ensure that our intention, which was purely educational, is not misconstrued or politicised in any manner, we have decided that it will no longer go ahead.' In a statement to The Irish Times, a spokesperson for the school said: 'We have carefully listened to all views expressed on this sensitive matter. We appreciate there are differing opinions, which we are obliged to accommodate. 'We have engaged directly with the school's community. Our primary focus remains the education, wellbeing and care of all our pupils.' While the school shares the same name as nearby Mount Anville Secondary School, a private school which counts former president Mary Robinson as an alumnus, the two schools are distinct and not associated with one another.
Irish Times
13-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
‘Say Kate is your boss': Pharmacist claims ex-TD O'Connell and husband were working him ‘to death'
A pharmacist who claims he was forced out of a €112,000-a-year job because former TD Kate O'Connell and her husband were working him 'to death' has denied raising his voice and becoming 'aggressive' when she pulled him up on using his phone at work. In a complaint under the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977, Marwan Al Rahbi has alleged that he was constructively dismissed by Rathgar Pharmacy Ltd – having been forced to quit order to protect his health after a diagnosis of workplace stress, the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) was told. The company, which is owned and operated by Mrs O'Connell and her husband, has pharmacies in Kilmacud , Rathgar and Sandyford in south Dublin . It denies the complaint. Mr Al Rahbi in evidence to the WRC on Tuesday: 'They were working me to the death. One of the reasons to resign was to protect my health and mental health. I couldn't sleep at night, and I have a family. I provided them many opportunities to resolve things, and they didn't,' he said. READ MORE His barrister, Cillian McGovern, appearing instructed by Crushell & Co Solicitors, said his client had written to his employer raising a formal workplace grievance in May 2024, referring to 'several concerning incidents', but was met with 'blanket denial' from Mrs O'Connell, and that the matters were not addressed by the firm. The WRC heard that Mr Al Rahbi initially complained about Mrs O'Connell to her husband after she found him using his mobile phone at work on one occasion early in 2024. Mr Al Rahbi said Mrs O'Connell had come up to him and said: 'Are you not working?' Mr Al Rahbi's evidence was that despite a directive on mobile phone use at work, the pharmacy group operated five or six WhatsApp groups where work-related information was circulated. He said he was using his phone on that occasion because he was 'dealing with my sick child' at the time. The complainant said he then phoned Morgan O'Connell about what had happened. At the time, Mr O'Connell was waiting in hospital for his wife to collect him following shoulder surgery, the tribunal heard. 'I rang Morgan, and he said: 'Go the f*** back to work',' Mr Al Rahbi said. His position was that it showed that the likely outcome of any workplace grievance he raised with Mr O'Connell about his wife, or vice versa, was going to be 'unfair'. Mrs O'Connell told the WRC on Tuesday that Mr Al Rahbi was 'insubordinate' towards her on April 15th, 2024. 'It was the flying off the handle at me ... it was extremely unusual for a support pharmacist to verbally attack their senior pharmacist, their boss, in front of other staff,' she said. She said Mr Al Rahbi was 'very on edge, agitated, aggressive', Mrs O'Connell said, adding that she 'instinctively' moved to the far side of a bench during the incident. 'I do remember I said to him: 'If you think you're going to hit me, that's not going to go very well for you', as he wagged his finger and shouted in my face,' she added. When counsel for the respondent Derek Dunne, instructed by Kelly Hoban Solicitors, put it to Mr Al Rahbi in cross-examination that he had been 'aggressive' or 'confrontational' with Mrs O'Connell, he said: 'No, I haven't been aggressive. This is my way to speak.' Questioned on a further interaction with Mr O'Connell in the pharmacy a number of days later, Mr Dunne, put it to Mr Al Rahbi that he had 'refused to acknowledge Mrs O'Connell as your immediate superior'. The complainant said Mr O'Connell was 'shaking' and 'screaming' at him, quoting him as saying: ''Say Kate is your boss.'' 'I said: 'Why should I say that?'' Mr Al Rahbi said. He said Mr O'Connell then told him he was to put his phone in the kitchen. 'We are not in school. I have a family. I am a responsible adult,' he said. 'He was screaming: 'Are you continuing to use the phone?'' he added. Counsel put it to Mr Al Rahbi that Mr O'Connell had given him a verbal warning on that occasion. Mr Al Rahbi said it was 'five minutes of shouting' and that 'turning up shouting and angry at me' was 'not a verbal warning'. Mr Al Rahbi said Mr and Mrs O'Connell raised mobile phone use as an issue with him at a review meeting later in May 2024. 'I was trying to answer; they didn't allow me to speak.' He said he wanted to discuss his overall working hours, rostering during Ramadan, the contract he had been presented with and the question of a pay rise, but that these were not addressed by the couple. His evidence was that Morgan O'Connell told him: 'You are here just to listen, not to speak.'' The employer's position is that Mr Al Rahbi told his bosses he was quitting the job with a week's notice. Mr Al Rahbi said Mr O'Connell told him he was 'dismissed' but that he had not been sure whether that meant from the meeting or from his employment. The tribunal heard Mr O'Connell wrote to Mr Al Rahbi a few days later: 'You were not dismissed by me, you were offered a renewal of your contract under the same terms and conditions.' Mr O'Connell added in his email that he was 'an employer of 20 years' and was aware that a dismissal was meant to be in writing. In her evidence, Mrs O'Connell told the WRC that Mr Al Rahbi 'said he was quitting' at that stage. 'I distinctly remember Morgan saying: 'We're going to offer you the same contract and the same terms and conditions.' He [Mr Al Rahbi] said: 'I quit.' We said: 'When?' He said: 'I'm leaving in a week.'' Mr Al Rahbi's complaint stated that he reached 'breaking point' during a 12.5-hour shift on June 19th last year. The tribunal heard the pharmacy followed a four-three shift pattern on a 28-day rotation, with 12.5-hour daily shifts. Mr Al Rahbi said he had agreed with Mrs O'Connell in September 2023 that he would have reduced hours for Ramadan in 2024. Adjudicator Andrew Heavey has asked Mrs O'Connell to produce working-time records. The adjudicator has adjourned the case pending the arrangement of another date for the hearing in the autumn, when it is expected Mr O'Connell and an employee of the pharmacy group, Sarah Lynch, will give their evidence.
