| Personal information | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Gaelic football | ||||||||||
| Born | 1967 or 1968 (age 56–57)[1] Corduff,County Monaghan, Ireland | ||||||||||
| Nickname | Banty[2][3] | ||||||||||
| Inter-county management | |||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||
| 2004–2010 2010–2012 2016–2017 2019–2022 | Monaghan Meath Wexford Monaghan | ||||||||||
| Inter-county titles as manager | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Séamus McEnaney (born 1967/1968) is aGaelic footballmanager and businessman. He has managed his nativeMonaghan county team (in two spells), as well as theMeath andWexford county teams.
His brotherPat is a former inter-county referee.[4]
McEnaney is in charge of Westenra Arms Hotel in the town ofMonaghan.[1]
In December 2021,The Irish Times reported that the McEnaney controlled company Brimwood Ltd had been given payments of €15.78 million (including VAT) from the Irish state forasylum seeker accommodation (direct provision) at eight different properties across fivecounties in 2020, the largest sum given to any company for that purpose.[1] As well as County Monaghan, other properties are inCounty Cavan,County Dublin,County Louth andCounty Meath.[1] Brimwood's portfolio includes Dún Na Rí House Hotel, Airport Manor Hotel, Carnbeg Hotel, Setanta Guesthouse, Alverno House, San Giovanni House, Lisanisk House Hotel and Treacy's Hotel.[1]
McEnaney managed the Monaghan senior football team from 2004 until 2010.[5] Where he led his side to aNational Football League Division 2 title in 2005. He also led Monaghan to a firstUlster Senior Football Championship final in 19 years in 2007 and again in 2010 but lost out toTyrone both times.
McEnaney was appointed as Meath manager in November 2010.[6] He resigned in 2012 after Dublin defeated Meath by three points in the2012 Leinster Senior Football Championship final, andLaois defeated Meath by three points again six days later in the fourth round of the All-Ireland qualifiers.[7][8]
In October 2016, McEnaney was announced as Wexford senior manager on a three-year deal.[9]
Yet he did not complete the three years on offer. He resigned as Wexford senior manager after one season in August 2017, blaming the distance he had to travel; the driving from his house inCarrickmacross toFerns in Wexford was, he said, "a 500km round trip... I'd leave my house at 3.0pm to head to training and I wouldn't be back again until midnight. The driving was the single biggest reason because the county board and the players were top class. We had whatever we needed and the respect, commitment and attitude of the players couldn't be questioned."[2] He immediately began his search for a nearer post; within days of announcing his departure from Wexford he submitted his name for the then vacantDonegal senior football manager role that ultimately went toDeclan Bonner.[3]
McEnaney led Monaghan to anUlster Minor Football Championship in 2018.[10] He was linked with theDown senior football manager role.[10]
In August 2019, McEnaney's return as Monaghan senior football team manager was confirmed.[11] In September 2021, followinghis suspension for bringing the Association into disrepute, Monaghan announced McEnaney would be retained as manager for a third year.[12] He left at the end of the 2022 season.[13]
On 8 April 2021, amid theCOVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland, theIrish Independent reported thatMinister for JusticeHelen McEntee had received photographic evidence and video footage of Monaghan footballers collectively training in late March and thus breaching the COVID-19 Level 5 restrictions then in force. Minister McEntee sent the details to both theGarda Síochána and Croke Park.[14] The incident occurred atCorduff GAA club nearCarrickmacross and members of the county's management team were implicated.[15] TheDepartment of Justice confirmed that it had received the information and passed it on to the Garda Síochána, the GAA and theDepartment of Health.[16] Gardaí launched an enquiry into the matter.[17] Hours later, Monaghan GAA announced it was suspending McEnaney for 12 weeks after the team manager admitted involvement in breaching the Level 5 restrictions and said it would comply with a GAA investigation into the incident.[18][19][20] MinisterJack Chambers told RTÉ: "My officials from the Department of Sport have been in touch with the GAA to reemphasise that all breaches undermine the broader public health messaging". Former GAA presidentSeán Kelly said: "It's terrible to see it happening, officially organised, in a GAA club, by a county team... Saying you can't start training until two or three weeks after other counties would be a good place to start" as an additional punishment, he said.[21] GAA presidentLarry McCarthy said the GAA's reputation had been damaged.[22]
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Monaghan Senior Football Manager 2004–2010 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Meath Senior Football Manager 2010–2012 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Wexford Senior Football Manager 2016–2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Monaghan Senior Football Manager 2019–2022 | Succeeded by |