MANAGERIAL UPDATES: Aherne joins Dohenys as coach, as Ilen start search for manager

DECLAN O’Dwyer is staying on as Dohenys senior football manager for 2023, but there are major changes to his backroom team.

As Robbie Ahern, Finny Collins and Noel O’Donovan have all moved on, O’Dwyer has brought in former Bandon manager Colm Aherne as coach for the new season.

‘Colm will bring great experience and he also brings an outside voice and new ideas, which are important. We’re happy to get him on board,’ O’Dwyer explained.

Daniel O’Donovan and Paul Deane will also be involved with one more backroom member to be confirmed. In addition, Alison Hayes has come in as strength and conditioning coach. The Dunmanway club lost to rivals O’Donovan Rossa in the 2022 Cork senior A football quarter-final and will hope for improvement next season.

After narrowly avoiding the 2022 senior A football relegation play-off, Ilen Rovers’ joint management team of Diarmuid Duggan and Jason Whooley has stepped away, along with the full backroom team. The new Ilen management team is yet to be decided.

Elsewhere in the senior A football championship, Tim Buckley is staying on as Newestown boss, as the club will hope to bounce straight back to the premier senior grade following their relegation. Gene O’Donovan is staying put as O’Donovan Rossa manager after a good season where they reached the county semi-finals.

In the Premier IFC grade, as Colm Aherne moves to Dohenys, Bandon have confirmed that Aidan McCarthy will be taking over roles as both manager and coach of the club’s footballers. His selectors will be Jimmy Gabriel, Derek O’Driscoll, David Aherne and Ray Brennan. The Lilywhites suffered relegation from the senior A grade last term and will be attempting to bounce back instantly.

David O’Donovan will stay on as Bantry Blues’ boss in 2023 after guiding the team to the county final this year. Morgan O’Sullivan is stepping away as manager of Castletownbere; they were unlucky not to make it out of their group in 2022, losing narrowly to Bantry and Aghada.

In intermediate A, Tim O’Sullivan will remain in charge of Adrigole for 2023. The Beara side reached the quarter-finals in 2022, losing out to Boherbue after extra time but it was a campaign which included a win over eventual winners Kilshannig. Also, Pat Nolan looks set to stay on as Gabriel Rangers manager after a really progressive season.