Offaly’s joint senior football managers Mickey Harte and Declan Kelly have stepped down.
It ends Harte’s two-year involvement with Offaly, after linking up with Kelly’s management team in August 2024.
Kelly, who guided Offaly to an All-Ireland under-20 title in 2021, had been the Faithful County’s stand-alone senior manager for the 2024 campaign before Harte came on-board for the last two seasons.
Offaly county board confirmed that once Kelly had decided to step down, Harte opted to follow suit rather than examine the possibility of remaining at the helm.
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Offaly secretary Pádraig O’Meara stated: “Offaly GAA has been informed by joint senior football managers Declan Kelly and Mickey Harte of their decision to step down from their roles.
“Once Declan had made his decision to step down, Mickey felt it was also the appropriate time for him to move on.
“The county board would like to express its sincere thanks to Declan, Mickey, head coach Luke Bree and the entire management and backroom team for their dedication, commitment and professionalism throughout their tenure with the Offaly senior football team.
“We wish Declan, Mickey, Luke and all the management and backroom team every success and happiness in the future.”
A standout achievement during their reign was Offaly achieving promotion to Division 2 last season, claiming the Division 3 league title with their win over Kildare in the decider.
However, they were relegated back to Division 3 this season after failing to win any of their league fixtures. Offaly also struggled to make an impact in the championship over the last two seasons and came up short in this year’s Tailteann Cup, losing to Wicklow in the semi-final.
