Carsley and Coleman out of running for Ireland job 

Ex-Wales manager Coleman was interviewed by the trio of Marc Canham, Jonathan Hill, and Packie Bonner but was never the FAI's preferred candidate 

OUT OF THE RUNNING: England head coach Lee Carsley was the FAI's preferred choice to succeed Stephen Kenny as Ireland boss but the timing and the terms weren’t to his ultimate satisfaction.  Picture: PA

The FAI’s search to land their suitable candidate could drag on with potential for a caretaker manager to be installed for the friendlies in late March.

It’s understood the headhunting team have conceded defeat in their quest to coax Lee Carsley from his England U21 post and other contenders such as Neil Lennon and Chris Coleman have been ruled out.

Ex-Wales manager Coleman was interviewed by the trio of Marc Canham, Jonathan Hill, and Packie Bonner but was never their preferred candidate.

Carsley retained that status from early on, even before Stephen Kenny’s contract wasn’t renewed in November, but a combination of factors has conspired against finalising a deal.

Hopes continued in recent weeks that an enhanced package would lure the ex-Ireland midfielder into the post he has always coveted but the timing and the terms weren’t to his ultimate satisfaction.

Carsley has been immersed in preparations, alongside his assistants Ashley Cole and Joleon Lescott, continuing the defence of their European crown with qualifiers against Azerbaijan and Luxembourg.

That’s the same week as Ireland hosts Belgium and Switzerland on March 23 and 26.

While Canham has contacted candidates who were on their original list of 12 to confirm their exclusion from the final reckoning, there is no successful candidate to be unveiled imminently.

For that to occur, a meeting of the expanded 14-person board must be convened in the first instance to approve contract terms and then ratify the recommendation of the chosen one by Canham.

The FAI’s director of football declined to rule out the prospect of having a temporary arrangement in place for the March games, not ideal given Hill declared a preference for Kenny’s successor to have been installed before the Nations League draw in Paris 12 days ago.

That came and went without Carsley’s transfer being sealed and the aspiration to turn his head have rapidly receded since.

Unless the association hatch a deal with a contender within their budget — in and around the same €560,000 basic salary as Kenny concluded with — they’ll take their time to assess what other potential bosses emerge on the market.

Kenny’s final No 3, John O’Shea, would likely step in as caretaker, but U21 boss Jim Crawford can’t be ruled out. His U21s have a Euro qualifier in San Marino on the eve of the Belgium friendly.

All recent meetings of the directors have been dominated by the looming visit to Leinster House for a grilling by the Dáil Public Accounts Committee (PAC).

Their last audience with politicians in Kildare Street on December 13 to be questioned by the Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media committee was a fractious affair and new Chairman Tony Keohane is eager to ensure the association presents the best version of itself this time around amid the public glare.

Trust is a vital component at a time the FAI is reliant on state aid, not just currently but for funding their ambitious 15-year €863m facilities and infrastructure plan.

Estimated to last three hours, governance is the spine of Thursday's session, including the specific dispersal by the FAI of €33.7m in covid-19 resilience funding that was granted to offset turnover losses caused by the pandemic.

Questioned five months ago as to whether these monies contributed to the FAI culling €20m of their debt to €44m, Hill acknowledged it did so.

He said: “It was all part of the overall revenues that came into football and lots of sports at the same time. Covid monies came in and were part of the revenue over that two-and-a-half year period.

“There was a surplus and the board agreed to use some of that surplus to pay down and restructure the debt.” 

Hill’s personal issue on conversion of untaken holidays into €12,000 of payment — contrary to the FAI employment handbook and concealed from the board apart from then chairman Roy Barrett — has also piqued curiosity within the committee.

As part of an internal FAI investigation, Keohane has interviewed staff who were privy to the saga to ensure all versions of events are consistent ahead of the scrutiny that’s guaranteed.

The PAC invited a number of FAI personnel, including director of people and culture Aoife Rafferty and Robert Watt as chair of their audit and risk committee.

It’s not known if the board member, also the Department of Health supremo, will attend but the appearance and evidence of Alex O’Connell, financial controller of the FAI when the Hill incident began, is highly anticipated.