Brian Flanagan to become new Kildare manager

BRIAN Flanagan will take over from Glenn Ryan as the manager of the Kildare senior football team manager after his appointment was proposed this evening by Kildare GAA, and is set to be ratified at September's county board meeting. 

A teak tough defender during his time as a player with his club Johnstownbridge and during his intercounty career with Kildare, he went on to be a highly regarded coach when where he worked under Cian O’Neill in his native county and with Jack Cooney in Westmeath.

But it’s as manager where the 39-year-old has flourished. In 2022, he led the Kildare under 20’s to an All-Ireland final defeat to Tyrone only to come back 12 months and go one step better when beating Sligo in the decider.

Many of those players who featured on those squads will be expected to feature as Kildare look to bounce back from a disastrous 2023 that saw relegation to Division 3 of the Allianz League and ended with a Tailteann Cup defeat to Laois.

Flanagan enjoyed his best time as a player with Kildare under Kieran McGeeney and his backroom has a strong flavour of that era.

Aidan O’Rourke was an All-Star as a player when Armagh won the All-Ireland title in 2002 and was highly regarded as a coach when he worked under McGeeney in Kildare has since gone to manage Louth and be involved in the Donegal set up.

Damien Hendy played under McGeeney and then went on to serve as selector for two years under the Armagh man and stayed in that role when Jason Ryan was next into the hot seat. Like Flanagan, Hendy has also managed his own club, Castledermot, and has been involved in the coaching of a number of underage Kildare teams.

Daryl Flynn was a hugely influential player under McGeeney and has coached a number of teams in his club at Moorefield but this is his first step up to intercounty coaching.

In a statement, Kildare GAA said:

“Kildare GAA is pleased to announce that Brian Flanagan will be proposed by the Management Committee as the new Kildare Senior Football Manager for a four-year term. His nomination will be brought forward for ratification at the September County Board Meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, September 3rd.

Brian Flanagan guided the Kildare U20 team to consecutive Leinster titles in 2022 and 2023, as well as an All-Ireland title in 2023.

Joining Brian’s backroom team are Aidan O’Rourke, Damien Hendy, and Daryl Flynn, each bringing valuable expertise and support to the management setup.

Kildare GAA extends its best wishes to Brian and his management team.”