Crisis-hit Donegal hopeful Lacey will reconsider position

Donegal GAA say they have agreed on "a pathway forward" for their crisis-hit academy and are hopeful former Head of Academy Development Karl Lacey will return to his position.

Last month academy coaches, performance support and logistics support resigned en masse, saying that they had "lost all confidence in governance of Donegal GAA" after Lacey stepped away from his role, citing a lack of support from the county board.

At a special county committee meeting last night, Donegal GAA acknowledged the "difficult period" which has put the county into the national spotlight, but insisted that progress was made in addressing the situation.

"We would like to inform our clubs and supporters that we have agreed on a pathway forward for the Donegal GAA Academy," a statement read.

"We would hope that we will lay the foundations for a progressive future, for the Donegal underage development structures."

Lacey was thanked for his "outstanding progress" and the committee stated that they are hopeful that the 2012 All-Ireland winner, along with the other departed members of the academy, would return to their respective positions.

"We wish to state it is the express wish of our County Committee that Karl and the coaches would return and we are working hard and are hopeful that they will reconsider their positions.

"We look forward to working through the recent issues with our academy personnel and building on the great work achieved until this point."

Last weekend Seán Cavanagh called the turmoil behind the scenes as "shambolic".

There has been further uncertainty on the pitch, with senior manager Paddy Carr this week stepping down after only five months in charge.

The county are bottom of Division 1 with three points heading into the final round