Kieran McGeeney has been ratified as the Armagh manager for the 2025 season, and with the Sam Maguire trophy currently doing the rounds in Armagh, it is no surprise that they want to keep him around.
The Orchard county have only lifted the All-Ireland title twice in their entire history, once in 2002 when McGeeney was the captain, and again last summer, 22 years later, with the same man as manager.
Geezer is the only man from Armagh to own two All-Ireland medals, and is arguably the county's greatest ever servant having played for them between 1995 to 2007, and managed them from 2015 to present.
However, it is well documented that the journey to glory wasn't linear, and it looked at times like Armagh would be going nowhere under the guidance of McGeeney.
Of course when you looked at the wider context of things, the evidence was there to suggest that things were always improving, but nonetheless, managers are rarely afforded time when it comes to the top level, and there were times that the Mullaghbawn native looked like he was being edged towards the exit door.
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Five years before first Ulster championship win
McGeeney took the job as Armagh manager back in 2015, but did not record his first win in the Ulster championship until 2019 when they beat Paddy Tally's Down in the quarter-finals.
Up until then, people thought that the Orchards under McGeeney were cursed and in an anonymous letter to The Irish News, a former Armagh player who did not want to be named, even called for the county legend to be sacked.
“It can be hard to put your finger on what exactly has gone wrong but one thing is clear, his time has run out.
“The county board need to be mature about the next decision they make. Don’t hide behind loyalty or suggest that the clubs make the final call; it is the county board that makes the recommendation.
“Time to be ruthless and to make a change at the top. This team is capable of winning if they are properly guided.
Although success in the championship wasn't in abundance, McGeeney had guided the squad from Division Three in the league to Division One by 2021, and that was probably enough evidence to show that progress was being made.
Relegation and Rian O'Neill Rumours
in 2023 before a must-win league game against Tyrone, Armagh knew that defeat to their rivals would mean that they would be relegated.
During the week building up to the game, rumours had began to do the rounds that McGeeney fell out with his star player Rian O'Neill at training and the two even came to blows, so when the Crossmaglen star wasn't in the squad because of a thigh injury, it only exasperated things further.
Despite struggling for form themselves, Tyrone won on the day, and in the middle of the disappointment, the former county captain had to address the O'Neill rumours.
Needless to say, we haven't been in a boxing match. There's five of us have a shiner in there, so we thought it might add to the story.
"He took a small nick on the leg. It was actually on Tuesday evening, so the rumour mill was in overdrive before he even got it."
Defeat to Monaghan leads to club vote on McGeeney's future
Later in the 2023 season, Armagh reached the Ulster final for the first time in over a decade and lost to Derry on penalties, which was cruel, but again a clear sign that progress was being made considering that it took five years to even win a game in the championship before that.
However, when they met Monaghan in Croke Park in the quarter-finals, it looked like a golden opportunity to reach the last four of the All-Ireland for the first time since 2005, and they blew it.
Once again they lost on penalties, but the fact that the game had even got that far whenever many considered Armagh to be the superior team, made it a very hard pill for fans to take.
Before McGeeney was ratified for the 2024 season, a season where they end the campaign as All-Ireland champions, there was a call for clubs to vote on whether or not he should remain in charge.
Although Geezer won by a convincing majority, there were still 16 votes against him, and that noise was getting louder every year.
Penalties... again
It's almost a sick joke at this point, but when Donegal beat Armagh in yet another penalty shoot out earlier this summer to win the Ulster final, it was difficult to see a way back for McGeeney.
Curses, hexes, bad mojo, whatever it was, it just seemed as though the whole Geezer and Armagh thing wasn't going to work out, and that they could get close, but ultimately never get over the line.
Pundits and columnists seemed to have ran out of sympathy as well, and following their latest capitulation in Clones, Philly McMahon joined Joe Brolly in twisting the knife by questioning their manhood in his Irish Independent column.
Armagh didn’t deserve to win last week. Not just because of what happened in the last 15 minutes, but their entire approach to the day.
"They didn’t have the balls to win."
Happy ending
In the end, McGeeney and Armagh did what they did best and they bounced back, but this time, they finally had a little bit of luck on their side.
Victorious against Galway, Derry, and Westmeath saw them reach the quarter finals where they took care of Roscommon and booked their first semi-final since 2005.
A famous victory in extra time against Kerry saw them reach their first final since 2003, and they did not let that opportunity slip as they beat Galway and climbed the Hogan steps.
The rocky road maybe had a few more bumps and hurdles than they would have liked, but with Geezer at the wheel, they managed to find a way through.
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