Dessie Farrell steps down as Dublin manager after elimination from All-Ireland
The 42
DESSIE FARRELL HAS announced that he is stepping down as manager of the Dublin footballers.
Farrell confirmed the news to GAA+ following his side's All-Ireland SFC quarter-final defeat to Tyrone in Croke Park.
It's the second second successive season that Dublin have exited the championship at the quarter-final stage.
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He explained that he informed the players in the dressing room after the game and had already told the county board at the start of the year that this would be his last season in charge.
BREAKING DESSIE FARRELL STEPS DOWN🚨
Dessie Farrell has just announced he is stepping down as Dublin Manager after today's Quarter-Final defeat to Tyrone. ❌
— GAA+ (@GAAPlusOfficial)
June 28, 2025
It's the first time since their Sam Maguire winning season of 2021 that Tyrone have reached the semi-finals.
Malachy O'Rourke's team
timed their scoring run perfectly to settle a grinding
contest pulling clear to win by seven in the end after a late burst of points.
Written by Sinead Farrell and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won't find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women's sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe
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The relationship stretches back further than when he took the senior post in December 2019, back to the underage development teams he took charge of after his Dublin playing days ended in 2005, to the county minor and U21 teams that he regularly steered to All-Ireland finals. Two decades of involvement forged a deep connection and helped cement Farrell's Dublin legacy. He leaves with five All-Ireland triumphs as a manager – minor (2012), U21 (2014 and 2017), and senior (2020 and 2023). His senior reign may be criticised for not adding more success, but the comparisons with the previous glittering era were always going to look unfavourable. The margins in their semi-final defeats of 2021 and 2022 were wafer-thin. Managing the transition from the trophy-laden Jim Gavin days was going to be difficult for whoever inherited the role of Dublin boss. And managing the shift to the next era after Farrell's departure is another major challenge. It occurs at a time when Dublin's slippage is undeniable. Saturday night was their third championship defeat of the summer, Tyrone joining Meath and Armagh in the list of conquerors. Galway knocked them out at this stage 12 months ago. Throw in the Mayo and Kerry last four victories, and Dublin have been defeated by six different counties in championship over the past five seasons. That's in stark contrast to the run from 2013-19 when Donegal's famous result in 2014 was the only interruption to their dominance. The drain of players has obviously contributed to Dublin's regression, a roll call of some of the greatest players within the county and nationally, who have shifted into retirement. Filling those sizeable voids is not straightforward. Throw in injuries like the one that wrecked Con O'Callaghan's season, at a time when his importance to the Dublin team has never been more pronounced, and the task became harder. Saturday night graphically illustrated Dublin's difficulties and the scale of the challenge facing the next manager. The game was there waiting for them to take a firm grip of it, but they never did. Goal chances were not converted. Cormac Costello was denied by a Niall Morgan save and he sent another shot skidding across the goal. Niall Morgan got another critical touch to tip away a Luke Breathnach pass that was headed for a Dublin team-mate lurking at the back post, waiting to palm to the net By keeping a clean sheet and denying Dublin the oxygen of a goal, the type of moment that has ignited the blue support in Croke Park in the past, Tyrone had taken a significant step to victory. Dublin got two points from their substitutes, but Tyrone doubled that with a four-point tally in the finale. The bench press is no longer there to get Dublin over the line. The patient and methodical attacking play that underpinned Dublin's success for several years does not work to the same extent since the FRC ushered in a new set of rules to transform the game. Two-pointers construct the shape of a game. Tyrone's first three scores on Saturday night saw orange flags raised. They finished with five two-pointers, Dublin had none. They have been consistently outscored in that facet of the game all summer. Look at the some of the weekend's big winners, Donegal fired over three of them on Saturday night, while Kerry got five from their O'Shea-Clifford double act yesterday afternoon. The game has changed and Dublin have not changed at the pace required to match it. Who will take over? Declan Darcy, the right-hand man during Gavin's stewardship, and Ger Brennan, who guided Louth to Leinster glory in memorable fashion last month, are two early contenders that have been suggested. It will be a fascinating appointment. The next manager takes charge at a time when Dublin's production line appears to have slowed. Their last All-Ireland minor title was under Farrell's guidance in 2012, their last U20-21 success also under his watch in 2017. This year Dublin didn't collect either of the provincial underage crowns on offer. Farrell enjoyed brilliant success during his range of roles with Dublin teams. His legacy is assured in that regard. The future for his replacement is stacked with challenges. *****
