Moran and Kidd in the frame for Irish job

KEVIN MORAN yesterday said that if he succeeded in being appointed manager of Ireland he would fill the job with utter and total conviction.

Moran, a heroic figure with Manchester United, Ireland and Dublin gaelic footballers from the mid 70s, yesterday said he was responding to the promptings of sport’s people he respected when he decided to apply for the vacancy left by the resignation of Mick McCarthy.

His nomination of another former Manchester United player Brian Kidd as his partner stemmed from his admiration for the work of Kidd as coach and his standing in the game.

Kidd’s availability to work as coach under Moran would be contingent, of course, on his being able to work out an agreement with his current club, Leeds United.

“Brian is in full-time employment with Leeds,” said Moran. “But for me he would be the ideal running-mate to take charge of Ireland. He has worked at the top level of the game throughout his career, as player and as coach, and he has worked with some of the leading professionals in the game at Leeds, Blackburn Rovers and Manchester United.”

It remains to be seen whether Kidd would be prepared to resign from his post with Leeds if Moran were to secure the appointment. It is possible they might suggest he combines both jobs as Steve McLaren did for a period while manager of Middlesbrough and coach to England.

Kidd has strong Irish connections and while he was capped for England, he could have played for Ireland. His grandmother was Irish and his connections to this country were further strengthened when he married a Donegal woman.

Moran failed narrowly in a bid to secure the job of manager of Ireland in 1996 when Jack Charlton retired. He was beaten by Mick McCarthy 2-3 in a vote to decide the issue.

He was capped 71 times for Ireland, 13 as captain. “Playing for your country is the ultimate accolade and being appointed manager would take that honour to the next level ” he said.

He said if he was given the job he would resign his position as director of Pro-Active Sports Management, a company with headquarters in Manchester and other offices in London, Holland, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Australia and the USA. The company has 380 professional footballers on the books including Andy Cole, Peter Schmeichel, Everton’s sensation Wayne Rooney and Irish internationals Kevin Kilbane, Mark Kennedy, and Keith O’Neill.

The company last year had a turnover of more than €12.5m and pre-tax profits of €4.2m.