Kerr quits St Patrick's for job as Irish Youths team manager

BRIAN KERR was yesterday named as the new manager of the Irish national under 16 and under 18 teams by the Football Association of Ireland. The Dubliner's appointment to the fulltime position has prompted his resignation from his current post at Saint Patrick's Athletic after 10 years with the Inchicore club, which he led to the National League championship in 1990 and last season.

FAI General Secretary Bernard O'Byrne read a statement confirming Kerr's appointment at a press conference in Merrion Square yesterday. He thanked St Patrick's Athletic for their cooperation with regard to Kerr's departure from Richmond Park.

The club, meanwhile, stated that the process of appointing a successor was already at an advanced stage and that the new man would be officially announced on Thursday morning.

The appointment of Kerr, who was not expected to leave Richmond Park, ends a lengthy spell of speculation regarding who would fill his new job, which is seen as being of crucial importance for the development of future talent for the senior national team.

Since the departure of Joe McGrath to a coaching job with the New Zealand FA a year ago there had been considerable pressure on the FAI to demonstrate its commitment to the development of underage structures. The arrival of Kerr, who was previously involved as an assistant to Liam Tuohy at this level during the early eighties, will be welcomed as a major step in the right direction.

Kerr has been an outspoken critic of the FAI himself over the years, but he yesterday pointed to the new direction being taken by the association over the past 12 months, during which time there has been a extensive turnover amongst the leading personalities, as being a contributory factor in his enthusiasm for the new post.

"In the past I've been the first one to criticise the direction things were going in here but I think it's undergoing a major overhaul now. There has been a new professionalism over the past year and I'm looking forward to being part of the new set up," he said.

The first major task facing Kerr in his new job will be to guide the under 18 side through their two legged play off with Norway for a place in the UEFA Championship finals in the summer.

With this in mind the FAI have accepted an invitation from the Portuguese FA to send a team to a mini tournament in March which will give the new manager a chance to familiarise himself with his panel. In June he will take charge of the under 19 side that is due to travel to Malaysia for the world finals.

While conceding that there would be considerable expectations regarding the results of his teams, Kerr played down the idea that there would be added pressure on him in his new role. "People will want to see good results, but nobody needs to put pressure on me about results, I do enough of that for myself.

"Anyway," he added, "there is pressure on you at any level of the game. I've been in positions at club level where you don't know whether the money is going to be there to pay the players and you re counting the crowd between corers and free kicks. That's real pressure.

"With this job, results will be just one part of it. The main thing here is that the senior team is doing well and that we are bringing young players through. My aim is to make sure that we keep bringing the talent through so that we can keep up the performances at that level."

Kerr expressed his regret about having to leave his current post as manager of league champions St Patrick's Athletic, remarking that "it wouldn't have been my choice (but) it became clear that they (the FAI) wanted me working exclusively for them and so I had to take the decision.

"There's one of those quotes that goes around in football, he added "that there are only two things certain in life, death and the manager gets the sack, and I suppose I've just beaten one them to the tape."

With his replacement, possibly his assistant at Richmond Park, Liam Buckley, due to be named on Thursday, Kerr's resignation from the St Patrick's job is effective immediately, although he will not take up his new post until February - when he has worked out his notice at UCD, where he is currently employed as a laboratory technician.