Kilcar appoint new duo as joint managers for the 2025 season

Kilcar will have a new management team in place for the 2025 season after it was confirmed this week that Mark Sweeney and Derry coach Paul Devlin will be joint managers for the new season.

The pair will succeed Michael Hegarty, who stepped down at the end of last season.

Kilcar chairman, Michael Molloy, confirmed the appointment of Sweeney and Ballinascreen native Devlin this week.

“Yeah, we have appointed Mark Sweeney and Paul Devlin as joint managers for the coming season. I think the first game in the Donegal Gaeltacht is pencilled in provisionally for 16th March. 

“It is good to have a management team in place. It is a massive commitment for managers as well as players. It is not so easy getting them any more,” said Molloy.

“It is a big plus for the club to have Paul Devlin back,” said Molloy. Molloy spent some time with the club last year but due to personal circumstances was not able to commit. Devlin’s CV includes time coaching at Down side Kilcoo.

Molloy said it will be an interesting year with the new rules. “It will be for all clubs. The new rules will mean a lot  of changes. It should make games more entertaining anyway.”

Molloy said it was a big commitment for Mark ‘Scrappy’ Sweeney to step up from playing. “He told me he is 37. I thought he was only 32,” laughed Molloy. “It’s great to have him. He has given an awful lot to the club as a player,” said Molloy, who said he didn’t know if would continue playing. “I didn’t ask him that.”

Kilcar have always been one of the top teams in the county in the last few years but will have to work without their county trio of Patrick McBrearty, Ryan and Eoin McHugh during the league. They surprisingly lost out to St Michael’s in the championship last year and they will be hoping to be involved in the business end of that competition again this year.