The Donegal man is living life in slow lane now in Letterkenny, a world away from the madness of county football and All-Ireland semi-finals
Charlie Mulgrew is enjoying a “stress free” life, tipping around Letterkenny in his taxi. “Letterkenny is a super place, it really is,” he says.
That’s probably natural enough. Decades of coaching, including four years as Fermanagh boss, have shaped how he views the game. “Maybe a few people from Fermanagh might get in the taxi and talk about that. It is nice, I suppose. If there were elections up, it’s not football chat. It changes. Mulgrew was down eight starters from ‘03, a few of them off season “casualties” he reckons prompted by drawing Tyrone in Ulster the following year.
You can imagine what the only county without an Ulster title would have been like in the build-up to an All-Ireland final with Kerry. It’s difficult to fathom now, two decades on, that it could easily have happened. “There was a good bunch of leaders. Shane McDermott, Barry Owens. Big Liam McBarron in the middle of the field. You dropped him, he understood it. You brought him on, he understood it. Everyone bought into the unity of the team.
“You kind of thought, ‘What are you at here?’ I wanted to see a couple of the boys. I can’t explain it. I don’t know what it was. Brian McEniff was the manager and I’d have known him for 100 years. “We had to pull them together at half-time against Armagh and make sure we got them convinced that we can do this job. Put it in their heads. It’s up to you, the guys, to go out and do it.”“We had our fair share of luck to get there, but again it was there to be won,” recalls Mulgrew. “I still think I could have made a change here or a change there, possibly that might have tipped it.
Then the family upped sticks for a new life in Letterkenny, where Mulgrew won All-Ireland schools titles with St. Eunan’s in football and soccer in the same year. “I remember the helicopters landing in the car park outside the hotel and all the soldiers jumping out.
Antrim Casement Park Donegal GAA Fermanagh GAA Co Fermanagh
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Charlie Mulgrew: 'Celtic flourished when the pressure was on'Charlie Mulgrew: 'Celtic flourished when the pressure was on'
Read more »
Charlie Mulgrew: 'Celtic flourished when the pressure was on'Charlie Mulgrew: 'Celtic flourished when the pressure was on'
Read more »
CJ McGourty on how Eimir Martin friendship convinced him to take Fermanagh jobFermanagh take on Derry in the Ulster Ladies Football Championship final on Saturday before the All-Ireland series gets under way later this month
Read more »
Michelle Gildernew to stand down from Fermanagh South Tyrone seatThe Sinn Féin MP is currently running for the European Parliament in the South
Read more »
Manchester United reportedly make their move as Kieran McKenna chase hots upFermanagh man said to have held talks over a potential return to Old Trafford
Read more »
DUP stand aside in Fermanagh and South TyroneGavin Robinson says the DUP will encourage unionists to vote for the UUP candidate.
Read more »