Kernan and O’Mahony team up for Allstars

ALL-IRELAND winning manager Joe Kernan of Armagh has been appointed along with Galway’s John O’Mahony as managers of the Vodafone Allstars teams to play an exhibition game on the West Coast of America next month.

Kernan and O’Mahony will manage the 2002 and 2001 All-Star selections respectively. The teams will meet in the San Diego University Stadium on January 18 during a week-long visit by the touring party to south California.

Kernan described his appointment as a great honour and a source of great personal satisfaction.

“I was very lucky during my own playing career to be selected as an Allstar and to tour in the United States in the 1970s as a player. So being named manager of an Allstar team has great personal significance,” he said last night.

“Anyone who has ever experienced one of these tours knows just how valuable they are and I am delighted that in recent years both the GAA and Vodafone have revived the touring aspect of the Allstars. Many of my closest friends today are people I met on Allstar tours, great players and people that I would never have had an opportunity of meeting except in opposition on the playing field.”

Meanwhile, O’Mahony, who toured previously as a manager when the Vodafone Allstars visited Dubai in 2000, is relishing the appointment.

“The great attraction of team management, particularly in the demanding times we now live in, is to work with really talented players and watch them progress and display their skills.

“Being manager of the Allstars is a special thrill because you are working with the elite players in the game, players from all corners of the country whom you can work closely with, even if only for a short time.

“Players and managers learn a great deal from these outings, about different forms of preparation, both mental and physical. The social aspect of the tour is something that should not be underestimated and I am really looking forward to meeting the players and making our plans for the game. There is a huge Irish community in California traveling to San Diego for the game. It is an exhibition game and we will be trying to make it an exhibition of everything that is best in Gaelic football.”