O’Connor gets seal of approval
Jack O’Connor’s reign as Kerry manager was officially extended by three years at a meeting of the county board in Austin Stack Park, Tralee last evening.
It was also confirmed former goalkeeper Diarmuid Murphy will replace Eamonn Fitzmaurice as a selector.
Ger O’Keeffe will continue as a selector, having been part of the set-up with O’Connor since he replaced Páidi O Sé in late 2003.
Murphy, 35, is still active with his club, starring in Dingle’s third-round victory over St Michael’s, Foilmore at the weekend.
He holds four All-Ireland senior medals and was a double winner at U21 level, in 1995 and ‘96.
Jack O’Connor’s involvement dates from late 2003 when Páidí O Sé was not re-appointed following the Kingdom’s failure to Tyrone in the All-Ireland semi-final.
Under O’Connor’s guidance, Kerry won the Sam Maguire Cup in 2004 and after a further loss to Tyrone in the 2005 decider, reclaimed the title a year later. He then opted out and was replaced by Pat O’Shea, who steered the team to victory over Cork in 2007, but did not continue after the team went under to Tyrone the following year in the final.
O’Connor came back as coach in late 2008.
Again, he was successful in bringing the Sam Maguire Cup back home after victory over Cork, only to see his ambitions of retaining the title this year thwarted by the Down team which at the weekend qualified for the final.
His ratification was a formality, after county board chairman Jerome Conway first paid tribute to retiring selector Eamonn Fitzmaurice, commenting that he had no doubt he would ‘be back in some capacity’ in the future.
Informing delegates that he was proposing O’Connor ‘to train the county team,’ for the next three years, with Ger O’Keeffe and Diarmuid Murphy as his selectors, he also confirmed the re-appointment of Alan O’Sullivan as physical trainer. And, he announced the appointment of Joe O’Connor (involved with the Kerry hurlers this year as trainer) as weights and conditioning coach.
Conway paid tribute to the outgoing management and players for their efforts over the past two seasons, noting that it was the first August in a decade that they were ‘idle.’
Irish Examiner
31 August 2010