New Wicklow manager John Evans insists he won’t be daunted by the magnitude of the task he faces in changing the fortunes of the Leinster minnows.
Wicklow have long languished in Division 4, but fans of the Garden County will be hoping Evans can summon up some of the magic that saw him guide Tipperary from the lowest rung of the football league to Division 2 before restoring the fortunes of a Roscommon outfit that achieved successive promotions to go from Division 3 to the top flight.
"I’m delighted and honoured to be the new Wicklow football manager," Evans told Game On listeners on RTÉ 2FM.
When host and long-suffering Wicklow fan Hugh Cahill suggested that the Kerry man would be regarded by some as a glutton for punishment for accepting the role, Evans quipped: "Not some people - all the people!
"It’s nothing new to me. I went in to Tipperary and things were at a low ebb.
"I think they had won three or four games in the previous three years, or something like that."
"It’s about rebuilding; that’s my strength, that’s my forte"
Evans believes his skills set will give the county every possible chance of achieving improvement, while he was also keen pay tribute to former boss Johnny Magee, who resigned following a narrow loss to Laois in Round 1A of the All-Ireland SFC qualifiers.
He said: "It’s about rebuilding; that’s my strength, that’s my forte. Building teams, looking at talent, finding new talent and developing the new talent.
"Johnny Magee has had a tough time in a very difficult transition period for Wicklow.
"We’d hope the groundwork he has done will stand to us from here on in."
Evans is keen to avoid setting lofty goals for his new charges, instead favouring a back to basics approach.
"The first targets you want to set to the guys are the basic targets of attendance of training, improvement at every training session, see how they apply themselves, see have they respect for the jersey, see have they the loyalty to the county," Evans said.
"With those things, they grow on you. You just don’t switch on a light and everything is grand.
"If you start setting targets for guys who haven’t committed for those things, then you’re not going to achieve anything.
"Whereas if you get those things first, you look for achievable targets.
"Obviously the first thing, whether it takes one year or two years or three years, is to get out of Division 4.
"That was big for momentum in Tipperary and Roscommon - after the second year we were out of where we were, and suddenly, hey presto, everybody is interested in you."
