Michael Graham (born 28 July 1975) is an Irish

Gaelic football Gaelic football (; short name '')'', commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA, or football, is an Irish team sport. A form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score ...

manager and former player. He has been the manager of the Leitrim senior football team since 2024. He managed the

Cavan senior football team The Cavan county football team represents County Cavan in men's Gaelic football and is governed by Cavan GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the All-Ire ...

from 2018 to 2023, winning the

Ulster Senior Football Championship The Ulster Senior Football Championship is an inter-county competition for Gaelic football teams in the Irish province of Ulster. It is organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) and begins in April. The final is ...

(SFC) in

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

. He previously played for Cavan and was part of the team that won the 1997 Ulster SFC title.

Playing career

Club

A native of

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road (Ireland), N3 road that links Dublin ( ...

town, Graham joined the Cavan Gaels club at a young age. Graham played in his first county final in 1998 against Mullahoran. A goal in each half gave Mullahoran the title. Graham was captain as Cavan Gaels lost the 2000 final to Gowna, but the Gaels came back to beat the same opposition in the 2001 as Graham captained the club to their first title in 23 years. The teams met once again in the 2002 final, with Gowna coming out comfortably on top. Cavan Gaels were back in the final in 2003, facing Mullahoran. Graham scored 1–1 and was named man of the match as the Gaels regained the title. The Gaels faced Mullahoran again in the 2004 decider. Graham scored 1–2 and received the man of the match award as Cavan Gaels claimed another championship. Graham scored a point in the 2005 final as the Gaels claimed their third championship title in succession. After relinquishing their crown to Mullahoran in the 2006 final, Graham played in his last county final in 2007. Cavan Gaels got the better of Gowna, giving Graham his fifth championship medal.

Inter-county

In 1996, Graham was on the Cavan under-21 team that claimed the Ulster championship and reached the All-Ireland final. On 8 September, Graham started the All-Ireland final against Kerry, scoring 1–1 as Cavan suffered a four-point loss. At this stage Graham had joined the senior squad. Cavan faced

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

in the 1997 Ulster SFC final, and Graham started the game on the bench. Graham came on in the second half as Cavan claimed a first Ulster SFC title in 28 years by a single point. Cavan reached the Ulster SFC final again in 2001, with Tyrone as the opponent. Graham was brought on as a substitute in the second half, and a strong finish from Tyrone meant they came out winners on a 1–13 to 1–11 scoreline. In 2002, Cavan reached the final of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

, Graham scoring 2–1 in the semi-final win over

Roscommon Roscommon (; ; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60 road (Ireland), N60, N61 road (Ireland), N61 and N63 road (Irelan ...

. Graham started the final against Tyrone, with Cavan falling to a nine-point loss.

Coaching and managerial career

Club

Graham's first managerial job came at Butlersbridge, leading them to the

Cavan Junior Football Championship The Cavan Junior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition contested by lower-tier Cavan GAA clubs. It was first competed for in 1913. The winner qualifies to represent their county in the Ulster Club Championship and in tu ...

in 2004. He also managed Drumalee to the

Cavan Intermediate Football Championship The Cavan Intermediate Football Championship is an annual Gaelic Athletic Association competition between the middle-tier Gaelic football clubs organised by Cavan GAA. It was first competed for in 1915, before a lapse prior to being revived in 1 ...

in 2006. Ahead of the 2016 season, Graham was appointed as manager of

Longford Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It had a population of 10,952 at the 2022 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meeting of ...

club

Mullinalaghta St Columba's Mullinalaghta (; Irish ''Mullach na Leachta''), also officially referred to as Mullanalaghta, is a half-parish in the north-eastern part of County Longford, Ireland, located about eight kilometres north of Granard. Name and topography Mullin ...

. He led Mullinalaghta to their first county title in 66 years in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

. He followed this up by winning championships again in

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

and

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

. In 2018, Graham managed Mullinalaghta to the Leinster Club final, the first Longford club to reach that stage. Mullinalaghta caused a large upset by beating

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

club

Kilmacud Crokes Kilmacud Crokes () is a large Gaelic Athletic Association club located in Stillorgan, Dublin, Ireland. Background Kilmacud GAA club was formed in 1959 following a public meeting in Saint Laurence's Hall, where Stillorgan shopping centre no ...

to become Leinster Club SFC champions. At this stage, Graham had been announced as the next

manager, but continued with Mullinalaghta until their championship ended. Graham's last game with Mullinalaghta was the All-Ireland Club SFC semi-final loss to

Dr Crokes Dr Crokes is a Gaelic football and hurling club based in Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland. Notable players include Colm Cooper, Eoin Brosnan, Johnny Buckley and Tony Brosnan. Founded in 1886, the club's successes include the capture of the ...

in February 2019.

Cavan

Graham was announced as the manager of the

on 21 August 2018, succeeding Mattie McGleenan. Graham's first

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

campaign as manager ended in relegation from the top flight after defeat to

. The same year, Graham led Cavan to a first Ulster SFC final since 2001. Cavan lost that game by five points to Donegal. In 2020, Cavan suffered a second successive relegation after a loss to

on the final day. Graham then managed Cavan to a second consecutive Ulster SFC final. Cavan claimed a first Ulster SFC title since 1997, with a win against Donegal in the final. Cavan's poor league form under Graham continued in 2021, ending with relegation to Division 4 after a defeat to

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; ) is the county town of County Wicklow in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located on the east of Ireland, south of Dublin. According to the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, it had ...

. Tyrone brought an end to Cavan's reign as Ulster champions in the first round. In 2022, Graham led Cavan to promotion from Division 4 at the first time of asking, and also won the league final by beating Tipperary. After exiting the Ulster championship to Donegal, Graham managed Cavan to the inaugural final of the

Tailteann Cup The Tailteann Cup is a Gaelic football competition held annually since 2022 and organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is contested by those county teams, which, in the given year, have not otherwise qualified for the All-Ireland ...

against

Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...

. Westmeath were winners by a four-point margin. On 8 August 2022, it was announced that Graham would remain manager of Cavan for another two years. Graham managed Cavan to a second consecutive promotion in 2023, and Cavan also claimed a second consecutive league title with a win over

Fermanagh Historically, Fermanagh (), as opposed to the modern County Fermanagh, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Fermanagh. ''Fir Manach'' originally referred to a distinct kin group of alleged Laigin or ...

in the final. On 10 July 2023, Graham stepped down as Cavan manager after five seasons of managing the team.

Leitrim

On 18 September 2023, it was announced that Graham had joined the Leitrim management team under manager

Andy Moran Andy Moran (born 2 November 1983) is an Irish people, Irish Gaelic football Manager (Gaelic games), manager and former player for Ballaghaderreen GAA, Ballaghaderreen and the Mayo county football team, Mayo county team. A former manager of Leit ...

. Graham's first season there saw Leitrim promoted to Division 3 of the National League. After Moran stepped down at the end of the 2024 season, Graham was announced to succeed him as manager on a three-year term. However only a few months later he stepped down to join the couching team in

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

.https://www.leitrimobserver.ie/news/gaa/1625117/breaking-shock-as-mickey-graham-steps-down-as-leitrim-senior-team-manager.html

Honours

Player

Cavan *

: 1997 *

Ulster Under-21 Football Championship The Ulster GAA Football Under-20 Championship, known simply as the Ulster Under-20 Championship, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Ulster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest in ...

: 1996 Cavan Gaels *

Cavan Senior Football Championship The Cavan Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic Athletic Association club competition between the top Cavan GAA, Cavan Gaelic football clubs. It was first competed for in 1888. The winners get the Oliver Plunkett Cup and qualifies to ...

: 2001 ( c), 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007

Manager

Cavan *

* National Football League Division 3:

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

* National Football League Division 4:

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

Mullinalaghta St Columba's *

Leinster Senior Club Football Championship The Leinster Senior Club Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football tournament played on a knockout basis between the senior club championship winners of the competing counties in Leinster. The current holders of the Leinster title are K ...

Longford Senior Football Championship The Longford Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic Athletic Association competition organised by Longford GAA among the Senior grade Gaelic football clubs in County Longford, Ireland. The winning club qualifies to represent its county ...

Drumalee *

: 2006 Butlersbridge *

: 2004

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graham, Michael 1975 births Living people Cavan county football team non-playing personnel Cavan Gaels Gaelic footballers Cavan inter-county Gaelic footballers Gaelic football managers Leitrim county football team non-playing personnel People from Cavan (town)