ANDY MCENTEE SAYS he was “as surprised as anyone else” to make such a quick return to inter-county management, as he prepares to take over the Antrim footballers in 2023.
McEntee was confirmed as the new Saffrons boss last night on a three-year-term, just one month after departing his role as Meath manager for the last six campaigns. McEntee comes into the Antrim job to succeed Enda McGinely who recently stepped down from the position.
“It probably surprises me as much as anyone else,” he said in an interview with Jerome Quinn. “It wasn’t something I had in my mind.
“I went up to Belfast last week and had a look around. [I was] hugely impressed with facilities, with the attitude of the county board towards what they were trying to achieve, and the Casement Park project getting underway. It sounds like a very exciting time.
“I would also look at what’s happened in the last couple of years. Enda and Stephen [O'Neill] have done a lot of heavy lifting to change the culture up there and the level of expectation.
“They have an awful lot of things done right up there and seem to have the ambition to push on.”
During his time in charge of Meath, McEntee guided Meath to promotion to Division 1 and to the Super 8s in the championship in 2019. The Royals struggled this season as they lost heavily to Dublin in the Leinster semi-final and then bowed out of the All-Ireland qualifiers after losing out to Clare.
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