Cody set to continue his reign into a 15th season

The now imminent reappointment of Brian Cody as Kilkenny senior hurling manager has highlighted his unique longevity in an increasingly transient world – a 15th consecutive year in charge of his native county far surpassing any of his nearest rivals.

Cody has, as usual, waited until after the Kilkenny county final to formally resubmit his interest and official word of his reappointment is expected within the next week.

That Cody only commits on a year-by-year basis also makes his reappointment unique in the modern game.

Other hurling counties have, in contrast, seen some considerable turnover of managers in recent years. Anthony Daly is in fact Cody’s nearest rival as he enters his fifth consecutive season in charge of the Dublin hurlers, with most other counties either in first or second year appointments.

Henry Shefflin has spoken about the importance of Cody to the continuation of Kilkenny’s success: both men started with the county in 1999, playing key roles in delivering All-Ireland hurling title number nine back to Kilkenny in September

“It would be very hard for someone like myself, Noel Hickey, JJ Delaney or Tommy Walsh to go into the dressingroom, and Brian wasn’t there,” said Shefflin recently. “So I think it is massive, for us, that he’s stays on.”

Cody however is still short of the Kilkenny record of Fr Tommy Maher, who was in charge from 1957 to 1978.

In football, the only current term that comes close is that of Tyrone manager Mickey Harte, who is heading into his 11th season in charge – that’s a long way short of Seán Boylan, who served 23 consecutive years as Meath football boss.