GAELIC GAMES: Seán Moran reflects on a managerial career thatinfluenced the shape of the modern game

Yesterday was the 12th anniversary of Peter McGrath's first senior championship match in charge of Down - a comfortable win against Monaghan. It was the beginning of a managerial reign, which was to influence modern football considerably.

A teacher in the famous football academy of St Colman's Newry, McGrath first came to national attention as the manager of the 1987 All-Ireland winning minors, a team that included two players, Conor Deegan and James McCartan, with whom he would repeat the achievement at senior level.

Two years later, together with selectors Barney Treanor and former All-Ireland medallist John Murphy - who stayed on for all 13 years - McGrath took over the seniors and in his first season reached the League final, losing narrowly to Meath before going out disappointingly in the championship after a replay against Armagh.

Nonetheless, the core of the team was there and a year later after unpromising beginnings and a replay against Derry - courtesy of a 60-metre free by Ross Carr in injury-time - Down won a first Ulster title in 10 years, defeating Donegal in the final.

The team was capable of marvellous attacking football. Greg Blaney was at centre forward with McCartan and Mickey Linden in the corners. Gary Mason and Ross Carr were big, athletic wing forwards who patrolled the line from deep in defence.

As fate would have it, the team played Kerry in the All-Ireland semi-final. Down are the only county with an unblemished championship record against Kerry. As luck would have it Kerry at the time, August 1991, were deep in transition and the record was maintained - but only after a tense match.

Another record was that of never having lost an All-Ireland final. Meath were hot favourites going into the match but Down enjoyed a dazzling spell at the start of the second half, at one stage leading by 11 points before being hauled back to hang on by two points.

At this stage it's easy to forget that the football world of 1991 was very different from today's. The last 10 All-Irelands have been divided nearly equally between the provinces. Back then the Munster-Leinster duopoly hadn't been broken for 23 years - since Down themselves had last won.

So Down's win was ground-breaking, triggering a run of four successive All-Irelands for Ulster.

The Down players were an intelligent, opinionated bunch of individuals and at times the job of managing them was difficult. In 1993, less than two years after the All-Ireland victory, relations between McGrath and the players hit rock bottom.

In the wake of a fearful 11-point hammering by Derry in Newry, McGrath was critical of the players. The fallout was considerable with Greg Blaney announcing his retirement, others threatening not to play again and McGrath's own position in the balance.

At times during the autumn of that year it appeared that no common ground could be found. Eventually some degree of harmony was restored. Down were due to open the 1994 championship in Celtic Park against Derry who by then were All-Ireland champions. There had been a realisation that unless everyone was pulling in the same direction, the match could turn out as disastrously as the previous year's.

In the event what took place has generally been thought of as the match of the decade, a tight and edgy occasion that defied its potential limitations to blossom into a great football match, switching one way and the other before Ciaran McCabe's goal set Down on the way to victory.

There was almost an inevitability about Down's progress from there and sure enough, Cork and Dublin were defeated at the All-Ireland stage although the final was another close-run affair. This was probably a greater managerial achievement than 1991 because McGrath had to revive the momentum lost in the three years between successes.

His redeployment of virtually the same players within the team was also a tactical triumph -giving new roles to central personalities and re-igniting their interest.

Sadly for McGrath his management career was front-loaded and recent years have been a struggle as the great team disbanded and a new generation came on board.

His decision to step down was expected given the lack of success since reaching the 1999 Ulster final. Over the three intervening seasons Down haven't won a single championship match or qualifier.

Manager of the Year in 1991, Peter McGrath is one of a select few who have since the heyday of Mick O'Dwyer and Kevin Heffernan managed more than one All-Ireland win - Sean Boylan, Billy Morgan and John O'Mahony being the others.

Peter McGrath

Championship record (including two qualifiers) P33 W17 D3 L13

Success rate: 56% Honours: All-Ireland SFC 1991, 1994. Ulster SFC 1991, 1994

Manager of the Year: 1991

NFL finalists: 1990