Down have appointed Conor Laverty as their new senior football manager.
Former county star Martin Clarke, who also excelled in the AFL with Collingwood, will serve as a selector along with Declan Morgan, while a third selector will be appointed at a later stage along with the rest of the backroom team.
Laverty has already served two years as Down under-20 manager and, interestingly, will continue in that position alongside the senior job.
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He won an Ulster title with the under-20s last year and has previously had a coaching role with the Monaghan senior team.
Laverty, who played alongside Clarke for Down in the 2010 All-Ireland final defeat to Cork, is still one of the more prominent club footballers in the county having captained Kilcoo to All-Ireland club success earlier this year.
In addition, he has won 10 county and three Ulster titles with the club.
Laverty had been strongly linked to the Down job last year after Paddy Tally wasn’t retained and was rumoured to have former Donegal boss Jim McGuinness as part of his backroom team but, ultimately, none of it came to pass, with James McCartan eventually taking the job on for the second time having overseen the county’s run to that All-Ireland final 12 years ago.
It proved to be a very difficult year for McCartan, however, as Down were relegated from Division Two with just one point from seven games before exiting the Ulster Championship with a 10-point defeat to Monaghan. They were then well beaten by Cavan in the Tailteann Cup.
There were reports earlier in the year that McCartan was on the brink of stepping down amid player indiscipline so his decision to quit in the wake of the Cavan defeat came as no surprise.
And with Laverty the outstanding candidate within the county, Down made sure they got their man this time around.
There were reports earlier in the year that McCartan was on the brink of stepping down amid player indiscipline so his decision to quit in the wake of the Cavan defeat came as no surprise.
And with Laverty the outstanding candidate within the county, Down made sure they got their man this time around.
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