MANAGERIAL NEWS:IT COULD be a case of third time lucky for former Tipperary player John McIntyre as the new Galway hurling manager is announced tonight.
McIntyre, Sports Editor with the Connacht Tribune in Galway and who last year completed a second stint with Offaly, has twice before gone forward for the top job with the Tribesmen, but was not given the nod.
Now he is again one of three on a shortlist to succeed Ger Loughnane as Galway manager - the appointment is set to be made at a meeting of the Galway Hurling Board at the Raheen Woods Hotel in Athenry tonight.
Another former Offaly boss Michael Bond - who led them to All-Ireland glory 10 years ago - and former Galway manager Noel Lane are also in the running for the position.
The five-man committee headed up by county board chairman Gerry Larkin met last night to chose the new manager.
Eight candidates - Matt Murphy, Gerry Spellman, Vincent Mullins, Jimmy Heverin and Anthony Cunningham were also in the running - were interviewed at the end of last week.
A second round of interviews took place on Sunday night when McIntyre, Lane and Bond were again given the opportunity to pitch for the job.
"We are happy with the way the process has been carried out. All eight candidates made excellent presentations and it has not been an easy task because the quality of the candidates has been so high," said Larkin who is joined on the committee by hurling board chairman Miko Ryan, secretary John Fahey, former football board chairman Pat Egan and former Galway manager and All-Ireland winning captain Conor Hayes.
Meanwhile, Dublin's exhaustive search for a successor to Tommy Naughton as hurling manager has extended beyond last night's original deadline.
The county board's four-man selection committee - consisting of chairman Gerry Harrington, secretary John Costello, Seán Shanley and Danny O'Connor - had hoped to put forward a name for ratification at last night's county board meeting.
"The sub-committee are not yet ready to bring a management team to the county board," said Harrington yesterday evening. "We are still in the process but it is not the case that we will be in a position to ratify a new manager tonight."
A number of high-profile names have been touted for the managerial post, including Tipperary's All-Ireland winning player and manager Nicky English, Kilkenny legend DJ Carey and ex-Meath football manager Seán Boylan.
Former Kilkenny captain Denis Byrne last week publicly declared his interest in succeeding Tommy Naughton, but it appears that the county board still have their hearts set on making a more high-profile appointment.
