Mick Lillis is a

Gaelic games Gaelic games ( ga, Cluichí Gaelacha) are a set of sports played worldwide, though they are particularly popular in Ireland, where they originated. They include Gaelic football, hurling, Gaelic handball and rounders. Football and hurling, the ...

coach and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

and former player. He played for the

Laois county football team The Laois county football team ( ) represents Laois in men's Gaelic football and is governed by Laois GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the All-Irelan ...

, later managing them and has also been involved with numerous clubs in several counties. As well as managing winning senior championship teams in Laois with

Portlaoise Portlaoise ( ), or Port Laoise (), is the county town of County Laois, Ireland. It is located in the Midland Region, Ireland, South Midlands in the province of Leinster. The 2016 census shows that the town's population increased by 9.5% to 22,050 ...

, he also guided St Laurence's in Kildare and

Palatine A palatine or palatinus (in Latin; plural ''palatini''; cf. derivative spellings below) is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman times.

in Carlow to county titles.

Biography

Lillis is a native of

Cooraclare Cooraclare () is a village near Kilrush, in County Clare, Ireland, and a Catholic parish by the same name. Location The village of Cooraclare is in the parish of Cooraclare (Kilmacduane) in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe. It is from Kil ...

County Clare County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,817 ...

, but played most of his club football career with

and briefly played with the

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

. Lillis was working as

masseur Massage is the manipulation of the body's soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet or a device. The purpose of massage is generally for the treatment of body stress or pain. In Eu ...

for the

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

in 2005 when he received a four-week ban from the Laois GAC following an under-16 football league final between Portlaoise and Stradbally, which also led to Portlaoise senior club treasurer JP Cahillane receiving a six-month suspension for "verbal abuse and physical interference of the referee". Laois appointed Lillis as their senior football manager in 2015. After a defeat to Dublin in the 2016

Leinster Senior Football Championship The Leinster Senior Football Championship, known simply as the Leinster Championship and shortened to Leinster SFC, is an annual inter-county Gaelic football competition organised by the Leinster Council of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA ...

, Laois went on to beat Armagh in the qualifiers, but fell short against Lillis's native Clare in the next round. Lillis tendered his resignation as manager of the Laois senior football team shortly afterwards. Lillis led Laois to the bottom of Division 2, a Leinster SFC quarter-final exit and then an All-Ireland SFC qualifier exit to Clare before he resigned in 2016. He also used seven substitutes in a win, causing the game to be replayed, complained about a fixture against Dublin being held at

Nowlan Park UPMC Nowlan Park (; ) is the principal Gaelic Athletic Association stadium in Kilkenny, Ireland. Named after James Nowlan (the longest serving President of the GAA), the stadium hosts major hurling matches and is home to the Kilkenny hurling te ...

and dropped Gary Walsh when he cursed at him after being substituted. Lillis succeeded

Niall Carew Niall Carew (born 1974) is an Irish Gaelic football manager and former Gaelic footballer and hurler. He has been manager of the Carlow county team since 2020. Carew previously managed Waterford and Sligo. Career Born in Staplestown, County K ...

Ballylinan Ballylinan or Ballylynan () is a small town in County Laois, about from the border with County Kildare in Ireland. The name means "Lynan's town", though exactly who Lynan was is now forgotten. Transport A 12-mile railway line linking Ballylinan ...

manager ahead of the 2020 season. Ahead of the 2022 season Lillis joined

Offaly GAA The Offaly County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) ( ga, Cumann Luthchleas Gael Coiste Uíbh Fhailí) or Offaly GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Offaly. Separ ...

club Shamrocks, assisting manager Brian Kelly (the former Carlow captain).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lillis, Mick Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Gaelic games players from County Clare Gaelic football coaches Gaelic football managers Laois inter-county Gaelic footballers Portlaoise Gaelic footballers Sports masseurs Wexford county football team