Messiah moves to a new land

GAELIC GAMES: The slightly comical scene of a new county football manager being greeted with a standing ovation and roars of adoration - before anything is even close to being won - used to be a novelty in the GAA. When Mick O'Dwyer is involved it's greeted with a sense of déjà vu.

Yesterday he was given that exact greeting when introduced as the new Wicklow football manager, a reprise of his introduction to Laois four years ago, and Kildare before that.

There is a difference, though. For the record, Wicklow are one of only two counties who have never won a provincial football title (the other one being Fermanagh). On the basis of recent National League and championships performances they lie very close to the bottom of the pile. Not that O'Dwyer or the Wicklow football intelligentsia that filled a suite in Dublin's Westbury Hotel yesterday seemed to care. The Messiah was coming to the Garden. All roads led to the Promised Land.

Yet it is a new departure for the 70-year-old Kerryman. Having guided Kerry to 10 All-Ireland finals, eight of which they won, and then delivering long-awaited Leinster titles to Kildare and Laois, he surely faces his greatest challenge ever. Although he slipped up in his opening remarks by referring to his task of improving "the standard of football in Laois . . . ", his thoughts soon settled firmly on Wicklow's prospects, even if he wasn't quite sure where that might take them.

"I'm not saying we're going to win a provincial title, or anything like it, but I can assure you that we'll improve the standard of football in Laois . . . and then hope that we'll get plenty of hype there, which usually follows me around. I went to Kildare when they were at a low ebb, and they I moved on to Laois, who were also at a bit of a low ebb.

"Our aim is get the game on a good footing for future years, which is very important. That all starts at underage level, and I think those structures are there. So this is all about hard work, and I'm hoping I'll get the commitment required." (Second round of loud applause.)

O'Dwyer will bring one of his cohorts from Laois, his adviser Arthur French, and also announced two former long-serving Wicklow footballers Kevin O'Brien and Philip McGillicuddy as his selectors. (Third round of loud applause.)

But his arrival in Wicklow coincided nicely with the announcement that Roscommon businessman Seán Mulryan, owner of Ballymore Properties, would be sponsoring the county football team for the next three years - which inevitably raised the issue of the sort of illegal financial inducements recently expressed by GAA president Nickey Brennan.

"Well I suppose the general consensus out there is that this is about money," said O'Dwyer. "Like 'what's he getting now, by going to Wicklow?' But I'm in this game because I love it. I'm addicted to the game. It's in my blood, and I can't get away from it, to be honest. I just couldn't find myself in Waterville doing nothing.

"So you can talk about money and making money out of the game, but I can assure you that if I put the same time into any business then I'd be an exceptionally wealthy man. But what's wealth about? And money about? There's only one thing that matters in life, I can assure you, and that's health. And I've had great health . . ."

He then briefly lost track again of his geographical map . . . "I've done all the things in life I've wanted to do. If you gave me the White House in New York, sure you can have it, because I'm not interested in any of that stuff. I just want to be a part of everyday football, and that's the way it will continue to be." (Fourth round of loud applause.)

Not that O'Dwyer wasn't surprised by Brennan's comments that several GAA managers continued to be paid: "Sure I'm not surprised what they say up there at any time. And I suppose I'm not well got up there. But I really don't know what all this talk about money is about. Those people should be more interested in promoting the game in the weaker counties. We're all Irishmen, and it shouldn't be about county boundaries or anything like that.

"I just know Billy Timmons (Wicklow's Fine Gael TD) never came off the phone for the last four weeks. 'Will you come, will you come?' I think he realised I'd be a good man to promote the game in Wicklow. And I think Wicklow are right to do that, and it's crazy to hear talk about where the managers are coming from. If we can help promote the weaker counties, that's what it's all about, and that's what I'll try to do in Wicklow. (Fifth round of loud applause.)

Mulryan declined to put a figure on the Ballymore investment, except to say it was "substantial". While O'Dwyer isn't looking beyond the first year, he didn't rule out staying on board for the long haul if the potential he believes is there materialises.

"Overall, we're not setting any targets. We know exactly what we want to do. We want to improve standards, and the level of fitness. With a bit of luck we could do well in the league, but the championship will be our priority, a good show there. We'll try to work on that. But it's not about this year. We want to put a good base there for the years ahead. But we'll get the best players available to us, and starting next Saturday. I could be up two nights some weeks. Five nights the next. It will all depend on how they're behaving and that, but I can assure you I'll get them fit.

"It's a big challenge, of course. But there are good footballers in Wicklow. They have hands and legs and a head the same as any player in Dublin and Kerry, or wherever. It's all about commitment, and if we get the right commitment in Wicklow there's no doubt we'll put up a good show. I'm not saying we're going to win anything, but you never know what could happen." (Sixth round of loud applause, and so on.)

O'DwyerSpeak

"So you can talk about making money out of the game, but I can assure you that if I put the same time into any business then I'd be an exceptionally wealthy man. But what's wealth about? And money about? There's only one thing that matters in life, and that's health. And I've had great health . . ."

"If you gave me the White House in New York, sure you can have it, because I'm not interested in any of that stuff. I just want to be a part of everyday football, and that's the way it will continue to be."

"But we'll get the best players available to us, and starting next Saturday. I could be up two nights some weeks. Five nights the next. It will all depend on how they're behaving and that, but I can assure you I'll get them fit."

O'DwyerCareer

Kerry footballer 1956-1972

(Four All-Ireland wins)

Kerry manager 1975-1989

(Eight All-Ireland wins)

Kildare manager 1990-94, 96-2002

(Leinster titles 1998 and 2000)

Laois manager 2003-2006

(Leinster title 2003)