Already he is Dublin’s most successful football manager ever and Jim Gavin is heading towards becoming their longest-serving after extending his tenure until the end of the 2021 season.
The county board today confirmed the five-time All-Ireland winning boss has agreed to another two seasons as manager having last year shook hands on a deal to bring him up to and including the 2019 Championship.
It’s a further endorsement of the 47-year-old who took over from Pat Gilroy in October 2012 on a three-year term before being offered a two-year extension in November 2014, which was revealed the following May. Another two-year agreement was confirmed in May of last year.
News of the latest deal was confirmed on Dublin’s official website yesterday. County chairman Seán Shanley reacted: “Jim has contributed so much time and hard work on a voluntary basis to the Dublin team and I thank him and his backroom team for their continued efforts and dedication".
With 11 seasons in charge between 1974 and ‘76 and 1979 and ‘86, Kevin Heffernan remains the Dublin senior footballers’ longest-serving manager. Should Gavin serve until 2021, he will have completed nine seasons at the helm.
Gavin is currently the second longest serving manager behind Mickey Harte, who has been in charge of Tyrone since the end of 2002, and the Round Towers, Clondalkin man is now only three All-Ireland titles behind Mick O’Dwyer in the all-time successful managers list.
In his six seasons to date, he has experienced just one Championship defeat - the 2014 All-Ireland semi-final loss to Donegal - while claiming five Sam Maguire Cups, five Allianz Division 1 Cups and six Delaney Cups.
Similar to Kilkenny manager Brian Cody, Gavin explained in 2015 that his approach to deciding on his future is done season by season. “I go from year to year anyway. There are no contracts signed. It’s an agreement between myself and the officers of the county board.”
Gavin will be on the line for the Dubs Stars game this Saturday before the 2017 All-Ireland winning team and management head on their team holiday shortly after Christmas, a Caribbean cruise.
Dublin have a bye in the O’Byrne Cup semi-finals on January 12 but it’s not expected many if any of the county’s frontline players will be involved. It’s expected Gavin’s existing management team - Declan Darcy, Shane O’Hanlon, Jason Sherlock and Paul Clarke - will remain in place for 2019.
