Noel Skehan - Post-playing Career

Post-playing Career

In retirement from playing Skehan, as well as maintaining a keen interest in the game, has also come to be regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers of all-time. In 1997 he took charge of the Kilkenny intermediate hurling team for the newly-revived All-Ireland series of games. He guided his county to the championship decider in 1998, however, Kilkenny were defeated by Limerick on that occasion. Following Kevin Fennelly's departure as manager of the KIlkenny senior team at the end of 1998, Skehan was one of the names mentioned as a possible successor. The job eventually went to his former team-mate Brian Cody.

Skehan was one of Kilkenny's best prospects for the goalkeeping position on the Team of the Millennium, however, he faced still opposition from such legends as his fellow county man Ollie Walsh, Cork's Ger Cunningham and Wexford's Art Foley. In the end the honour went to Tipperary's three in-a-row winning 'keeper Tony Reddin. He was also beaten into second place for the 'keeper position on the Kilkenny Hurling Team of the Century. In spite of this Skehan is unique among exponents of Gaelic games. No player in hurling history has matched the astonishing record of nine All-Ireland medals won by Skehan from 1963 to 1983. With three of those medals won as a substitute, his record is surpassed by the eight All-Ireland's won by both Christy Ring and John Doyle, which were all won on the field of play.

Skehan has also served as a selector with the Kilkenny senior hurlers under Brian Cody. During his tenure as a selector in the early 2000s (decade) Kilkenny captured back-to-back All-Ireland titles in 2002 and 2003. Those two years also saw Skehan guide the Leinster provincial team to back-to-back Railway Cup titles.

On February 7, 2008 Skehan was profiled on the TG4 television programme Laochra Gael.