Armagh manager Kieran McGeeney is aiming for All-Ireland Final glory as his side take on Galway
Winning the All-Ireland with Armagh as manager having previously done it as captain would be the crowning glory in a ‘fantastic career’ for Kieran McGeeney, according to his former Minor team-mate and Celtic great Neil Lennon.
Now boss of Rapid Bucharest in Romania, the ex-Northern Ireland midfielder plans to watch Sunday’s All-Ireland decider at Croke Park between his native county Armagh and Galway on television and is hoping to see the team in orange lift the Sam Maguire trophy.
Neil Lennon believes All-Ireland success will be a crowning glory for Armagh boss Kieran McGeeney
That’s what McGeeney did as skipper in 2002, the only time Armagh have claimed All-Ireland glory, and he has the opportunity to create more history by doing it as manager.
“Kieran has had a fantastic career, and this would crown it if he was to win the All-Ireland as a captain and then a coach,” said Lennon on McGeeney, who he played alongside for the Armagh Minor team before moving across the water to become a successful footballer and manager.
“I’m not too sure how many have done that in the game. Certainly, no one from Armagh has done it.
“He was the captain in 2002 when the county first won, and to go for the second as a coach would be a fantastic achievement, and it couldn’t happen to a better person.
“He has dedicated his life to the sport. He has drive, intelligence and he is an inspirational figure, and he has had to make tough decisions. What he has done as manager has been for the one goal – to make Armagh the big team in Ireland.
“If Armagh win, Ciaran will be feted, and rightly so because we’ve had to live sort of in the shadows of teams like Tyrone, Derry and Donegal in Ulster over the last 20-odd years.”