Lynch backs reputation of new management

ANTRIM footballer Declan Lynch says that any rumours that the new Antrim management aren’t ready for county football coaching is wide of the mark.

The Lamh Dhearg man said this week that he is fully behind the new manager Enda McGinley, who has his former Tyrone team mate Stephen O’Neill in his backroom team.

Declan Lynch said: “I am very excited. I think their record speaks for itself.

“I have heard this rumour that they are inexperienced and Antrim could have looked at a more experienced manager. I don’t think that argument stands up. If that’s the case then no new manager is going to get a chance. I think they have proven themselves in their football careers, and with their clubs. And Stevie O’Neill was involved in Mickey Harte’s management when they got to the final in 2008.

“That idea of them not being experienced needs to be knocked in the head.”

Lynch says that he’s working on become a faster player in preparation for the new season.

“Anyone that knows me would know that I am not the fastest. I am doing a bit of work to improve my speed. That’s not the easiest to do. It’s been slow, pardon the pun, but I can see the benefits.

“I have a bag of balls there too to keep my eye in as well, to make sure basic skills are not going to drop.

“It’s hard to work on skills when you are not allowed onto the pitch. I am just making sure that I am on top of things.”

Antrim has a new management team this year. McGinley took over from Lenny Harbinson, who departed after Antrim lost to Cavan. McGinley has O’Neill in with him.

The squad still hasn’t met up though.

“The management have been in regular contact. We are getting a call once a week. The strength and conditioning coach Brendan (Murphy) has been fantastic. They devised a programme for us to work away at. It has been very enjoyable. It is not a programme that is boring and it has got us through the last couple of months.

“We have good craic on the WhatsApp group as well. It is a good group. We are doing work and we are making ourselves accountable.

“We have the same goals that we have had in the past few years. We want to get promoted and we want Antrim to get better.

“We want Antrim to be better than the other teams that are in the promotion hunt.”

Lynch has some slight concerns that the team haven’t met up, but he knows that it is not worth complaining about.

“We will go back and have four to six weeks together as a team and a group, management will bring in ideas. Looking at our section of the group, it looks like it will be Limerick. Louth and Leitrim, three of the four teams are under new management. Leitrim have a head start ahead of the rest of the group. They have a better idea of management.

“I have not concerns about the management. I don’t think that it will be a year that will be wasted. We will be ready once we are allowed back to train.”

Lynch says the new panel is going to be very strong.

“There is talk of new boys coming in. Then you have the older boys and experienced boys who have come back. Niall McKeever is back in, James Laverty and Justin Crozier. Then you have Ruairi McCann from Creggan who is back. Then you have Paddy Cunningham and Michael McCann who are going well at the combined age of 100 (laughs).

“They are two super athletes and it is a credit that they still performing at the age of 35 and 36, or whatever it is, and they are still performing.”

He also said that he’s excited to see what some of the younger lads will bring to the team. He mentioned Cargin’s Pat Shivers and Rossa’s Cormac McGettigan as two classy footballers.

“We need to remember that they are still young and there is no point putting extra pressure on them.”