TIPPERARY MANAGER SHANE Ronayne will continue in charge of the county’s ladies footballers for another two years, the county board has confirmed.
The 2017 All-Ireland intermediate title-winning boss remains at the helm after an up and down 2018 for Tipperary.
His ratification comes as more good news for Ronayne after he steered Mourneabbey to a fourth All-Ireland senior club final in five years on Sunday, with the Cork side hoping that 2018 can be the year that they finally reach the Holy Grail.
Ronayne has guided the Clyda outfit to four in-a-row Cork and Munster crowns, but they were narrowly defeated in All-Ireland deciders in 2014, 2015 and 2017 while their journey came to an end at the semi-final stage in 2016.
They face Dublin and Leinster kingpins Foxrock-Cabinteely in Parnell Park on Saturday, 8 December and after numerous near misses on each end, they both target lifting the Dolores Tyrrell Memorial Cup for the first time.
With Tipperary meanwhile, Ronayne took over ahead of the 2017 season after working under the great Eamonn Ryan at Cork.
In a massive year, the Premier county landed three titles — Division 3 league, Munster and All-Ireland honours — and went unbeaten.
This year, Ronayne — who also manages UCC — oversaw a hugely successful Division 2 league campaign, in which they beat Cavan in the final to secure promotion to the top flight for 2019.
We would like to congratulate Shane Ronayne on being ratified as the Tipp Manager for the next 2 years. The very best of luck to Shane & all his team Ed Burke, Tony Smith, Sarah Jane Burke and James O Leary. 🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦
— Tipp Ladies Football (@TippLadiesFB) November 20, 2018
In championship though, they were relegated from senior back down to the intermediate ranks. They held their own and contested well through the All-Ireland series, drawn in a tough group with Donegal and Kerry, but after relegation play-off losses to Waterford and Cavan, they tumbled back down to intermediate.
Ronayne’s backroom team for 2019 has been confirmed as Ed Burke, Tony Smith, Sarah Jane Burke and James O Leary as they face Division 1 football in January.
Subscribe to our new podcast, Heineken Rugby Weekly on The42, here:
