Monaghan and Cavan football is set to receive a huge boost with 105 newly-qualified coaches in the area thanks to the Sean McCaffrey Foundation Coaching Support programme.

The programme, founded in honour of the legendary Sean McCaffrey who committed his life to the development of young talent across Ireland as well as in his native Monaghan, has seen 105 coaches successfully complete a series of coaching courses last year, fully funded by the foundation.

Many of the 105 coaches are expected to continue their coaching journey to the National D Licence with the local area set to benefit from the coaching experience of the new coaches and bring youth football to a new level in the counties.

The programme plans to bring these coaches up to the UEFA C Licence and David McMahon, who coaches at his local club Glaslough Villa FC & the Cavan /Monaghan ETP, has praised the impact it has had on his coaching and personal life.

"The course is incredibly relevant to what I do at underage level and the course has really given me the confidence as a coach to go and coach at a higher level, such as the Cavan/Monaghan ETP course," said David McMahon.

"When I started coaching, I was coaching a team who were really competitive and were looking to win cups and titles but when I came onto the PDP3, it brought me back to what it is about and developing players. Sometimes, coaches can lose sight of that and the course, which is delivered so well from a practical side, brings you back to what you're supposed to be doing.

"The Sean McCaffrey Foundation scheme has been massive for me in terms of funding the courses. Without the support of the foundation, I wouldn't be progressing my coaching career at all. I'm in my late 40's and had little to no interest previously in coaching but now, with the help of the foundation and the course, me and many others have taken so much from it and progressing as a coach."

"It has been great to see so many coaches progress towards the National D Licence and it is all possible thanks to the Sean McCaffrey Foundation," said FAI Development Officer Paul Smyth.

"The One Coach programme funds the courses for the coaches in Sean's memory who dedicated his life to youth development and if he was able to see how many qualified coaches we now have in his native county, he'd be incredibly proud.

"The coaches are now bringing their skills back into their local clubs and it will only benefit the progression of football in the area, whether that be at youth or senior level, so it is an exciting time for Monaghan & Cavan football.

"I want to thank FAI Coach Education and their staff who've delivered the courses in such a informative way."