Buddy O’Grady wants Kerry trainer job

July 1995

TRALEE man Buddy O’Grady will be a candidate for the job of trainer/manager of the Kerry senior football team.

In the aftermath of Kerry’s defeat by Cork in Sunday’s Munster football final, O’Grady declared:

“I have served my time with the county minor, under 21 and junior teams and this is the natural progression. It’s a job I feel I can handle and I am prepared to give it a go.”

He added: “Now is the time for people to declare their intentions and anybody with any aspirations at all to the job should come out now and say that they are interested.”

O Grady is putting his name forward on the assumption that the outgoing Kerry team manager, Ogie Moran, will not be accepting the job for another term.

“If Ogie wants to continue for another year, I would not oppose him,” he said.

“Ogie has done everything humanly possible to put Kerry back on the glory trail. Last Sunday, the players just didn’t perform for him on the day.

“It was a shame because, between this year and last year, he has come so close to beating Cork,” he said.

O’Grady has been involved as trainer/selector with the Kerry minors, under 21s and juniors and he is, in fact, the current trainer of the junior team which won a classic Munster final against Cork and lost in controversial circumstances to London in the All-Ireland semi-final at New Eltham, Ruislip, London.

In his years of involvement, he has lost only twice to Cork— once at under 21 level and once at junior level.

“I suppose I have a pretty good track record and I think I have proved that I have the ability to handle players,” he said.