Kearns keeps quiet on future as Limerick football manager

LIMERICK senior football coach Liam Kearns is remaining tight-lipped about his future plans.

He was very unhappy with the County Board over their handling of the dual player issue earlier this year, and threatened to resign if the dual players didn’t play football.

Given the loyalty to Kearns it was no surprise that dual players Stephen Lucey, Mark Keane, Brian Begley, Mike O’Brien, Conor Fitzgerald and Mark O’Riordan opted to play football only.

The county’s senior hurling management team, under coach Padjoe Whelahan, were adamant that to get the best out of their players, they needed total commitment.

Following a meeting in Claughaun Pavilion last January, County Board chairman Pat Fitzgerald told delegates the hurling management was not prepared to back down on the issue, and there the matter rested.

However, it’s well known that many club delegates had expressed their disappointment that the six players weren’t given the chance to play both codes in 2004.

Kearns and his backroom team of Billy Lee and Brian Kelly have another 12 months of their two-year term to run, but will inform the County Board of their plans before next month’s meeting.

Meanwhile, Dublin football supporters are angered with the ticket allocation for Saturday’s Bank of Ireland SFC double header at Croke Park.

Their County Board has 13,000 tickets for the attractive afternoon of football, with the Dublin and Kerry tie preceded by the clash of Leinster champions Westmeath and Derry.

That figure is considered insufficient to meet the demand from clubs, while the number of ticket requests from the public for individual and family tickets has been described as “phenomenal”.

The sides have not met in the championship since 2001 when a replay was required to separate the sides in Semple Stadium, Thurles.

Ironically, Westmeath manager Páidi Ó Sé was in charge of his native Kerry on that occasion, while Dublin were managed by Tommy Carr, whose Roscommon side were beaten by the Capital men a fortnight ago. Tickets will not go on sale to the public.

Kerry’s allocation is 8,500; Westmeath’s 10,000 and Derry’s 7,000, which combined with Dublin’s adds up to 38,000, some 31,000 short of capacity, which has seen Dublin fans raising “serious doubts over Croke Park’s ticket allocation scheme”, according to website hill16.ie.