Gavin Devlin

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Irish Gaelic football player and coach

Irish name Gábháin Ó Doibhilin

Sport Gaelic football

Gavin Devlin
Personal information
Irish name	Gábháin Ó Doibhilin
Sport	Gaelic football
Position	Half back
Born	County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Nickname	Horse^[1]
Occupation	Building contractor^[2]
Club(s)
Years	Club
? -present	Ardboe
Club titles
Tyrone titles	1
Inter-county(ies)
Years	County
	Tyrone
Inter-county titles
Ulster titles	3
All-Irelands	2

Gavin Devlin is a Gaelic football coach, selector, manager and former player. He has been manager of the Louth county team since 2025. Devlin played for the Ardboe club and the Tyrone county team, winning two All-Ireland SFC titles with Tyrone. He then worked as Mickey Harte's assistant and selector at both Tyrone and Louth.

Devlin won one All-Ireland Minor Championship (1998) and two All-Ireland Under 21 Championship titles in 2000 and 2001.

He won two All-Ireland SFC medals; in 2003, playing a pivotal role in Tyrone's blanket defence system, and as a panel member in 2005.

Coaching career

Devlin has coached Kildress Wolfe Tones Seniors in Tyrone.^{[citation needed]}

He assisted Mickey Harte during the end of his tenure as Tyrone senior manager, then moved with him to Louth.^[3]^[4] When working together during their single season with Derry, Harte said of coach/selector/assistant Devlin: "He is as good as another son to me".^[5]^[6]^[1]

Ten months after leaving Louth, Devlin returned there as "underage football development coordinator, with a remit of steering the county's academy squads, post-primary and rising stars programme", according to Louth GAA.^[7]

He was thus not in a position to link up with Harte when Harte joined Offaly.^[8] Devlin was appointed manager of the Louth senior footballers in 2025, following Ger Brennan's departure.^[9]

References

1 2 Clifford, Micheal (29 September 2023). "Was Mickey Harte's assistant Gavin Devlin the real key to shock Derry switch?".
↑ "Player Profiles - Tyrone", 2005 All-Ireland Final Match Programme, DBA Publishing, 25 September 2005
↑ "Mickey Harte takes on role as Louth manager". The 42. 24 November 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
↑ "Peter Fitzpatrick insists Mickey Harte can pump life into Wee County". RTÉ. 24 November 2020.
↑ Keane, Paul (18 April 2024). "Loyal wingman Devlin like another son to Mickey Harte". Irish Examiner.
↑ Boyle, Donnchadh (18 April 2024). "'He is as good as another son to me' — Derry boss Mickey Harte on his long-standing lieutenant Gavin Devlin: Duo have known each other for 27 years and he is a constant from Tyrone to Louth and now Derry". Irish Independent.
↑ "Devlin returning to Louth after Derry exit". Hogan Stand. 16 July 2024.
↑ Nolan, Pat (22 August 2024). "Offaly make first appointment to managerial team since shock Mickey Harte arrival". Gavin Devlin, who worked alongside Harte in his latter years in Tyrone and then Louth and Derry, would ordinarily have been a shoo-in to join him in Offaly, but he has recently taken up a role as head of Louth's underage set up, which would appear to preclude him from being involved with another county.
↑ "Gavin Devlin returns to Louth set-up as manager". RTÉ. 22 July 2025.

External links

Interview

Preceded by Ger Brennan	Louth Senior Football Manager 2025–	Succeeded by Incumbent

Tyrone panels

Tyrone – 2003 All-Ireland Senior Football Champions (1st title)

1 J. Devine
2 C. Gourley
3 C. McAnallen
4 R. McMenamin
5 C. Gormley
6 G. Devlin
7 P. Jordan
8 K. Hughes
9 S. Cavanagh
10 B. Dooher
11 B. McGuigan
12 G. Cavlan
13 E. McGinley
14 P. Canavan (c)
15 O. Mulligan

Subs: P. McConnell; D. Carlin; Mark Harte; C. Holmes; P. Horisk; C. Lawn; P. Loughran; D. McCrossan; M. McGee; C. McGinley; F. McGuigan; S. Mulgrew; S. O'Neill; B. Robinson; M. Coleman

Manager: Mickey Harte

(Team as of September 2003 versus Armagh)

Tyrone – 2005 All-Ireland Senior Football Champions (2nd title)

1 P. McConnell
2 R. McMenamin
3 J. McMahon
4 M. McGee
5 D. Harte
6 C. Gormley
7 P. Jordan
8 E. McGinley
9 S. Cavanagh
10 B. Dooher (c)
11 B. McGuigan
12 R. Mellon
13 P. Canavan
14 S. O'Neill
15 O. Mulligan

Substitutes used: C. Holmes for Canavan; C. Lawn for McMahon; P. Canavan for McGinley

Substitutes not used: J. Devine; E. Bradley; B. Meenan; G. Devlin; B. Donnelly; P. Donnelly; C. Gourley; Mark Harte; C. McCullagh; L. Meenan; M. Murphy; M. Penrose; S. Sweeney

Manager: M. Harte
Trainer: F. McCann

(Team as of 25 September 2005 versus Kerry)

Tyrone – 2018 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship finalist

1 N. Morgan
2 M. McKernan
3 R. McNamee
4 P. Hampsey
5 T. McCann
18 R. Brennan
7 P. Harte
8 C. Cavanagh
9 C. McShane
10 M. Donnelly (c)
11 N. Sludden
12 K. McGeary
13 M. Bradley
25 C. Meyler
15 C. McAliskey

Subs used: 17 L. Brennan for C. Meyler; 6 F. Burns for N. Sludden; 14 R. Donnelly for C. McAliskey; 20 H. Loughran for K. McGeary; 22 D. McClure for C. McShane; 21 R. O'Neill for M. Bradley

Subs not used: 16 M. O'Neill; 19 M. Cassidy; 21 C. McCann; 23 A. McCrory; 24 H. P. McGeary

Manager: M. Harte
Selectors: G. Devlin; S. O'Neill

Louth football team – managers

S. White (1968–72)
J. Mulroy (1972–75)
Jack Smith (1975–76)
Management committee (1976–80)
F. Lynch (1980–82)
J. Mulroy (1982–84)
Frank Fagan (1984–85)
Management committee (1985)
M. Whelan (1985–87)
F. Lynch (1987–91)
D. Smyth (1991–94)
P. Kenny (1994–97)
P. Clarke (1997–01)
P. Carr (2001–03)
V. Andrews (2003–05)
É. McEneaney (2005–09)
P. Fitzpatrick (2009–12)
A. O'Rourke (2012–14)
C. Kelly (2014–17)
P. McGrath (2017–18)
W. Kierans (2018–20)
M. Harte (2020–23)
G. Brennan (2023–25)
G. Devlin (2025–)

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