PADRAIC JOYCE will be ratified as the new Galway football boss next week.
The Tribes legend will take charge along with John Divilly, Michéal O Domhnaill and John Concannon on board as selectors.
Kildare-based Divilly won an All-Ireland title with the Tribes alongside Joyce in 1998, and is currently in charge of the UCD Sigerson Cup squad.
O Domhnaill skippered the Carraroe club to their famous county title win in 1996.
Milltown native John ‘Scan’ Concannon played with Joyce and Divilly on the St. Jarlath’s Hogan Cup winning side in 1994.
Joyce, Divilly and Concannon were also on the 1994 Galway minor side who were beaten by Kerry in the All-Ireland final, but never played senior football together for the Tribes.
MOVING ON UP
Joyce makes the leap into the hotseat from the county under-20 job, and beat off competition from outgoing Tipperary boss Liam Kearns for the job.
Both parties were interviewed a second time for the post on Thursday.
The purpose of this was for their proposed backroom teams to be revealed to the six-man selection committee involved in the process.
Joyce and co. will be rubberstamped when the Galway county committee gather next Friday night, with an update on the on-going hurling manager saga also expected.
BAILED FROM THE RACE
Francis Forde, Noel Larkin and Tony Ward all withdrew from the race for that job during the week – leaving the Tribes with no candidates to replace Michéal Donoghue as boss.
Ward withdrew when it became apparent that the Forde/Larkin ticket was getting the green light.
The pair, intent on working together, then walked away because they felt they could not work with county board chairman Pat Kearney.
MOST READ IN SPORT
The drama was intensified on Tuesday night when main sponsor Supermac’s issued a second statement calling for two reports into the financial dealings of the county board to be made public.
The reports detail Galway GAA credit cards being used for personal expenditure and expenses and bonuses paid to officials without proper authorisation.
County board chiefs have hit back at the fast food giant and insist they have nothing to hide.