McCarthy hit by loss of Harte

Mick McCarthy is pondering his diminishing options at full back following the disclosure that Ian Harte will not play again this season because of a hernia problem.

His defection from the end of season games may cause the Ireland manager some embarrassment. At one time spoiled for choice at full back, he now discovers, rather unexpectedly, that his options in both positions are not quite what they used to be.

There were handsome tributes yesterday for Shelbourne manager Dermot Keely following his selection on Tuesday for the football writers' personality of the year award.

Noting that Keely has been at the forefront of domestic football either as player or manager for 25 years, Jim McLaughlin said that the award was apt recognition for one of the great stalwarts of the game in this country.

By his own admission, Keely was close to leaving Shelbourne at the end of last season after failing, because of a combination of circumstances, to achieve the kind of results which his pedigree suggested.

However, now he is on the verge of leading the club to the FAI Cup and championship double for the first time in its proud history and is being hailed, justifiably, as an inspired choice.

Keely was in good company on one of the great social evenings of the year in Irish football. Also honoured with special merit awards were Paddy Ambrose and Arnold O'Byrne, two men at different ends of the spectrum but still highly influential in shaping the development of the game here.

Ambrose, a member of Paddy Coad's celebrated Shamrock Rovers teams of the 1950s, played for the club in four different decades in one of the classic illustrations of the loyalty which sadly now rates low on the list of priorities.

For Arnold O'Byrne, who retires this month as managing director of Opel (Ireland) Ltd, the recognition is also wholly warranted, for no less than the members of Jack Charlton's technical team, his role as paymaster general was crucial in the evolution of the national squad.