Mike Finnerty
THE new Mayo senior football manager is not likely to be ratified until the last week of this month at the earliest.
The Mayo News understands that a mediator/facilitator was appointed last week to explore the circumstances surrounding the resignations of Pat Holmes and Noel Connelly last month after the vast majority of the county senior squad voted to support a motion of ‘no confidence’ in the duo.
The mediator/facilitator — believed to be Roscommon native Martin Conroy, a former secretary of Dublin City University — is now expected to meet with Mayo GAA chiefs and representatives of the county senior football panel to draw up a ‘Mayo Team Charter’.
Mayo GAA officials say that this document — a response to the events of recent weeks — will be signed up to by all Mayo players, management and officials in future.
“The one thing I do know is that this situation must never happen again,” said Mayo GAA chairman, Mike Connelly, at a County Board meeting on October 19 last.
“We are where we are. We need to solve this problem, and … as I said, we need to put a road map in place where this never happens again.”
The Mayo News understands that Mayo GAA officials are not planning to proceed with the process of formally speaking to Stephen Rochford, the only nominee for the Mayo management post, until after the mediator/facilitator has concluded their work.
It was also reported yesterday (Monday) that a County Board meeting has been provisionally pencilled in for next Monday night, October 16.
Mayo GAA chiefs are believed to be reluctant to conduct an interview with Stephen Rochford about the vacant Mayo management position before the issue of the ‘Mayo Team Charter’ is discussed at the next full meeting of the County Board.
However, with Rochford’s Corofin team in action against Castlebar Mitchels in the Connacht Club SFC Final on Sunday, October 22, his focus is likely to be on that fixture in the week leading up to the game.
All of which means that the appointment of the next Mayo senior football manager is still some time away.
