Mayo manager making mark on Wicklow GAA club scene

In the world of GAA management, some men build quietly, piece by piece, until suddenly their teams arrive on the big stage with steel, smarts, and spirit.

Mayo’s Alan Costello has made a career out of doing exactly that.

The Hollymount-Carramore man has been quietly making a mark on football fields in his adopted Wicklow and is now one of the most respected managers in the game, now with Avondale. 

His early success with Tinahely set the tone. Guiding the club to its first-ever county title in 2020, Costello quickly earned a reputation as a thoughtful strategist and a unifier of dressing rooms.

That triumph opened doors to the inter-county scene, where Wicklow’s Under-20s benefited from his developmental approach.

Over two seasons, his squad not only lifted a league development trophy but ran Dublin to two points in championship fare and claimed a notable win over Offaly. There were tough lessons too. Alan speaks about those days as formative rather than frustrating.

That exposure paved the way for a stint with the Wicklow senior setup, where he served as selector and interim manager. For a man who calls football his outlet and passion, the chance to compete at that level was more privilege than pressure.

Still, his full-time role as a school principal has always shaped his choices. As offers emerged, the Hollymount Carramore man remained grounded: club management, with all its demands, better balances life than a full inter-county post—for now, at least.

His journey has taken him across county lines, from Tinahely to a spell in Carlow with Tullow, where he led the side to an intermediate final. A natural communicator, it was often a phone call, a former teammate or a shared philosophy that linked him to a new challenge.

Back in Wicklow, Avondale became the next chapter—familiar faces like Zach Cullen and Conor Byrne were on the club’s selection panel, and this nudged him across the line. The fit was right: halfway between work and home, a talented panel, and a vision to return the club to senior ranks.

What defines his teams is resilience. The "soft centre" label once attached to some of his squads has long since been replaced by something more formidable.

He has spent the last two years cultivating camaraderie, decisiveness, and grit in pressure moments. Sunday’s county final was the latest evidence.

Facing Hollywood in the Wicklow intermediate decider on Saturday, his side battled a ferocious breeze on their backs in the opening half, kicking nine wides, which meant they would go in two points down at the interval. 

“Mixed feelings,” he admitted afterward—relief at the result, frustration at missed chances. The plan had been to finish with the wind, but Hollywood won the toss and flipped the script.

Still, his side adapted, shifting to a running style mixed with some great foot passing throughout the game.

In the dying moments, chaos and controversy arrived. Hollywood appeared to have snatched a decisive goal, before many noticed the referee’s arm raised to signal an infraction.

Alan had seen it. When the goal was wiped out, his team had one play left with the hooter looming. They showed maturity, worked the ball forward, and fisted over the levelling score. A draw felt like survival and relief rolled into one.

Another crack at the title awaits in two weeks. For Costello, it is less a reprieve than a continuation of the climb. His teams don’t panic.

They prepare, they learn, and they come again. And that, more than any single result, is the hallmark of his managerial career.