Fitzmaurice to see out final year as manager
EAMONN Fitzmaurice is expected to stay on for just the final year of his current two-year term as Kerry football manager, with an announcement due this week.
It’s understood that Fitzmaurice met the players in Killarney on Sunday evening to see if they were happy for him to stay on for the 2018 season, and having got that reassurance from the squad the Finuge man will see out the last year of his latest term.
It has been suggested in some circles that Fitzmaurice might have been considering staying for a longer period in order to do a full rebuild of the team, but it seems likely that he will remain in charge for the 2018 season for now and review the situation thereafter.
It’s also understood that the management team haven’t undertaken a full review of the season just gone but that will take place in due course, with the management team of Mikey Sheehy, Liam Hassett, Padraig Corcoran and Maurice Fitzgerald expected to remain on also.
No Kerry panellist has made any announcement on their future but Darran O’Sullivan is the latest to hint that he is mulling over whether or not he will remain on as a Kerry footballer.
Speaking last week the Glenbeigh-Glencar club man, who is getting married soon and who started a new restaurant business earlier this year, O’Sullivan said: “You just don’t know if you’re going to be able to go back next year or if you’re wanted to go back next year…
“You just don’t know. Like, every year that goes by that you don’t win an All-Ireland is an opportunity missed. There’s only very few of them around.”
Meanwhile, Austin Stacks are on the look out for a new senior football team manager after Pat Flanagan stepped down from the position following Stacks’ county championship exit against West Kerry at the weekend.
Flanagan was just one season in charge as senior team manager, having taken over from Stephen Stack. Selectors John Joe Sugrue and Johnny Walsh, as well as former Cork team manager Brian Cuthbert who was part of the management team, have also vacated their positions.
Speculation has already started as to a successor for Flanagan, with Kerry minor boss Peter Keane likely to top the list of possible candidates.