Former Sligo footballer Neil Ewing has praised the transformative approach of Tony McEntee in guiding the county up to Division 3 of the Allianz Football League.
Sligo prevailed against Leitrim by a point in the final round of Division 4 action on Sunday to earn promotion for the first time since they dropped down from the third tier in 2019.
Ewing highlighted the progress former Armagh footballer McEntee has made, including their run to last year's Tailteann Cup semi-finals.
"He's brought that experience and that aura of an All-Ireland winner from his time with Armagh," he told RTÉ's Game On, before pointing out the experiences McEntee had picked up as a manager in previous roles.
"He's brought, if I can sum it up in one word, a level of ambition. Probably quiet ambition.
"That ambition has filtered through to the players. It's helped some of those lads (in the panel) to stay involved and given them that carrot.
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"He hasn't accepted any excuses. A real no-nonsense approach in his own quiet way. So that has given Sligo a platform."
Beyond the carrot of a Division 4 final against Wicklow at Croke Park this weekend, Ewing added that their successful promotion campaign will be a fillip heading into a Connacht Championship campaign that leaves them on the opposite side of the draw to Division 1 sides Mayo, Galway and Roscommon.
London are their opponents in the provincial quarter-final.
"Their focus is going to be on Ruislip and a very, very tricky game with London just six or seven days after the league final this weekend and that's a game, from being involved myself, that trip over to London no matter how strong you are or maybe how weak London are depending on the players they have available to them in a particular year, it's a game you dread because it's a no-win situation," said Ewing.
"And I think London, their league form may not have reflected how strong they are and the calibre of players that they have.
"Probably even the way their form tapered off towards the end of the league suggests a team that probably even up their training load with an eye on targeting this Sligo game in Ruislip, the big scalp."
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