New Éire Óg manager Vincent Fahy ready to step up at senior

Vincent Fahy is the new Éire Óg LGFA manager and tasked with helping his progressive club build on four consecutive senior county final appearances.

Losing one county final is a hard thing to come back from so spare a thought for Éire Óg. 

The Ovens club heads into 2025 desperate to end a run of four consecutive Cork LGFA senior county final defeats. 

Three of those losses were against Mourneabbey before last year’s heartbreaking free-kick shootout defeat to Aghada.

With Joe Carroll now managing the Cork inter-county seniors, Vincent Fahy has stepped up as Éire Óg’s new senior team manager. 

Fahy, a long-time underage coach and senior team selector under Carroll for the past two seasons, is enthusiastic about the challenge of competing in Cork’s intensely competitive senior grade.

“The fact these players keep coming back and keep challenging for senior county title gives me hope heading into this year,” Vincent Fahy commented.

“They are still willing to put in all the hard work. It is going to take a massive effort to get back challenging for a county but that’s what these players are willing to do. 

"It is getting harder and harder because there’s so many teams that fancy their chances of winning a county right now. It has gotten massively competitive within the Cork LGFA senior ranks over the last couple of years.

“Despite those county final losses, these girls love playing football. They want to play, they want to go out and represent their club, families and parish as best as they possibly can.

“I first got involved with the club’s senior ladies back in 2023. I immediately saw the level of commitment and effort they were putting in. 

It was massive. I just want to try and help them progress again. It is amazing really, where we’ve been through the last two years. 

"It’s been a huge step forward and I want to keep building on that.” 

SO CLOSE

Éire Óg have been agonisingly close to lifting a senior county title, especially in their last two final appearances. Vincent Fahy believes there is enough raw material to go that extra, coveted step.

“We have been so, so close, losing by a point to Mourneabbey two years ago and then on free-kicks to Aghada,” Fahy added.

“The other two previous finals against Mourneabbey, I don’t think anyone would have beaten them. 

"Yet, even after those four county final losses, the belief within this group is still there. That is massive. Look, sport is cruel and, unfortunately, all the effort you put in, sometimes you just don’t get the reward.

“The fact that these girls are ready, willing and able to put their shoulders to the wheel once again is fantastic. Everyone cannot wait to get cracking and see where the season takes us.” 

Fahy’s Éire Óg LGFA backroom team will be comprised of Richard Scally (selector/goalkeeping coach), Finbarr O’Callaghan (selector), Gillian McCarthy-Lynch (selector), Claudia Parkes (FLO) and Brian Ahern (strength and conditioning) for the coming season.

The Ovens club, similar to many around the county, will be down one or two players this year due to emigration and work commitments. 

That is why the upcoming Cork LGFA county league will be vital for Éire Óg’s new manager. Blooding some of the club’s emerging talent is one of the most important item’s in Fahy’s in-tray.

“Our minors won a county title last year so we will look to have a mix of youth and experienced players for the county league,” Fahy admitted.

We want to be competitive in the league but we’re going to be trying out players in different positions. 

"The idea will be to try and mix things up a bit and see what we can take from that. Look, no one is looking any further than the league right now.

“It is going to be a case of trying to set out our stall and get players used to a style of play, a system. We will use the league to look at as many players as possible. 

"Thankfully, our experienced players are not going anywhere anytime soon either.

“What we want is competition for places. I want to build as competitive a squad as possible for the senior championship. That, more than anything, is what we will be working towards in the county league.” 

The dawn of a new season along with Vincent Fahy’s appointment offers Éire Óg, county runners-up for the past four years, an opportunity to dream big once again.