One of the famed McDonald boys who lined out for Virginia’s Ramor United in the 1970s and also found success at county level, Kevin McDonald is now manager at another Cavan institution, Denn GFC.
“Gaelic football is all that’s talked about in Cavan,” explains Kevin McDonald, manager of Denn Gaelic Football Club’s senior team. “Day and night!”
Kevin feels that the absence of competition in the rural parts of Cavan has given football the chance to become deeply entrenched in the minds of the county’s sports fans. “It’s the same in every Cavan club,” he adds. “There’s no hurling as such in the county and there’s very little soccer or other sports, so football has turned into an obsession.”
Kevin was born into one such typically football-obsessed household: “I was from a GAA family, mainly because my father was very much into it. His brother won an All-Ireland medal with Meath and four Railway Cups.”
Thirty-five years ago, the then four-year-old Kevin was brought along to local club Ramor United in the Virginia area of Cavan, where he would eventually become one of five brothers lining out for the senior team. Along with the success they enjoyed at club level, the band of McDonald boys went on to make their mark at county level.
“I played senior club and county senior one year, as did my brothers,” Kevin recalls. “Two of them lined out regularly, Derek McDonald being the most well known. He played at senior inter-county level for 10 years.”
Kevin remembers of his playing days: “Playing was everything, it was amazing. As a player, just getting out there and competing was really enjoyable, but getting to inter-county level was something special. It was what everyone wanted to do when they were growing up, but not many get the chance to.”
Despite enjoying an enviable playing career, it eventually had to come to an end. The 39-year-old says: “I stopped playing about eight years ago because my hip was gone. I would have loved to play forever, but my body sort of gave up on me.”
The following year, Kevin managed to set aside the disappointment of no longer being able to play by maintaining his interest in the game and taking up a managerial role.
“I started coaching the year I quit playing at Ramor United, and I coached them for four years,” he says. “They came up from division two to division one while I was there so we did quite well.”
After four years coaching at the club he had been a part of since he was barely out of nappies, Kevin decided to take a break. However, he had barely been out of the game a year when he was approached by his current club, Denn GFC.
Kevin recalls: “I moved over to my current club this year. I had been with Ramor for a long time but when I stopped I was asked to join here. I decided to go for it.”
Kevin came on board at what was a difficult time for Denn, who came into being under the stewardship of founder Fr Owen Collins in 1969. “We were tipped to go down this season,” he says.
However, Kevin and the team have been defying the doom-mongers so far, and are currently sitting closer to the other end of the table. “We’re going well, we’re fifth in the league now,” Kevin points out.
However, Kevin and the team have been defying the doom-mongers so far, and are currently sitting closer to the other end of the table. “We’re going well, we’re fifth in the league now,” Kevin points out.
The reasons behind the recent successes at the club are difficult to pin down, but the hard work of the people involved in Denn certainly seems to be a factor. Kevin explains: “I think I probably must put in about 15 hours a day, counting the amount of time I spend thinking about it! But you’re probably looking at around 10 hours a week between training and matches.”
So what does Kevin enjoy most about his involvement with the GAA? “Winning!” he exclaims. “I also enjoy the actual coaching of the players, trying to get the best out of them, but it’s mainly about the winning.”
There is one aspect of the GAA that does irk the manager: “I’d like to see games starting on time.”
The punctual coach continues: “A lot of teams take to the field maybe five minutes late but they really should start on time. I played in soccer when I was younger and teams would be fined for coming onto the pitch late.”
Kevin’s old club Ramor are not in the same league division as current club Denn, but a clash could still be on the cards.
“Ramor are back down in division two at the moment while we’re in division one. That said, we could easily run into them in the championship. We could meet them, but I really don’t want to think about it!”
