Eamon O'Shea and Liam Sheedy are set to rekindle their double act and take charge of the Offaly hurlers.
In what would be a shock move, the Tipperary pair are believed to be in line to form a management team along with Johnny Kelly, who was part of the previous regime under Michael Fennelly.
Offaly decided against offering Fennelly a fourth year at the helm after failing to reach the Joe McDonagh Cup final this year but the acquisition of the duo that inspired Tipperary’s All-Ireland successes in 2010 and ‘19 would appear to justify that decision.
Sheedy was manager for both of those triumphs with O’Shea, who managed Tipp to the 2014 All-Ireland final himself, a key member of his backroom team but the roles could be reversed for their latest appointment, should it go through.
Given Offaly’s status - they haven’t competed in the Leinster Championship since 2018 - it would be a huge coup to secure the services of such an experienced pair, with Sheedy’s attention to detail and O’Shea’s innovative coaching methods central to stopping Kilkenny’s five-in-a-row bid 12 years ago having inherited a Tipp senior team that was on the slide three years earlier.
Indeed, Sheedy was approached with a view to becoming Offaly manager between his two stints with Tipperary and declined but his apparent willingness to come on board this time may be a reflection of his relationship with Offaly chairman and Sunday Game colleague Michael Duignan.
The incoming management team’s brief will be clear - to win the Joe McDonagh Cup next year and restore Offaly to the top tier for 2024.
There have been green shoots of recovery in Offaly hurling of late as they have become more competitive at minor level in particular, reaching a Leinster final for the first time in 17 years in 2020 before going all the way to this year’s All-Ireland final, where they were beaten by Tipperary in heartbreaking fashion.
Naturally, it will take some time for players from those teams to come through to senior level but Offaly are clearly setting out their ambition that they want to be back in hurling’s top tier when that time comes.
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