Gaelic Games: William Kirby's recall to the Kerry colours has been shortlived. Kirby, an All-Ireland medal winner at centrefield in 1997, is back from the US and caught the eye of the county selectors at the weekend in a club match. Selected for tomorrow's NFL trip to Dungannon to play Tyrone, he has now been withdrawn from the team, writes Sean Moran.

A statement issued by the county board yesterday revealed that it had been brought to the county's attention that Kirby had played in the North American Board championships in San Fransisco and consequently would not be eligible for similar matches at home.

As he played in the Kerry Millennium Cup last weekend for Austin Stacks, Kirby technically faces a six-month ban for playing with irregular registration. Kerry county secretary Tony O'Keeffe said yesterday that club officials had ascertained from Croke Park last weekend that the player's registration had gone through and had failed to appreciate that, having played championship in the US, Kirby would not be available for Millennium Cup - the competition to decide who represents Kerry in the Munster club championship.

O'Keeffe said yesterday: "We will be investigating the situation but whether it was a misunderstanding or not, there is no way he could play for the county this weekend."

Kirby's exclusion is another blow to the Kingdom and his likely replacement will either be Kenneth Dillon, who started against Louth or John Lynch of Laune Rangers.

Athletics: Mark Carroll is set to provide the main Irish interest in the Ras Na hEireann International Cross Country next January, writes Ian O'Riordan. The Cork runner has laid down his plans for the upcoming campaign and the annual event in Dunleer will be the first step in what he hopes will lead to a strong show in the World Championships in Dublin next March.

This season's Ras will be staged on the earlier than usual date of January 7th and will also be the first cross-country outing for Carroll since he finished 21st in the World Championships in Belfast two years back. Carroll has also targeted the World Indoor Championships in Lisbon in late February, where he is expected to run the 3,000 metres.

Now back to full training at his American base in Rhode Island, Carroll wasted no time in putting the disappointment of the Sydney Olympics behind him. "It was just important to get back in the saddle as soon as possible," he says. "The way the final was run in Sydney, the slowest in maybe 30 years, made it even worse but I wasn't going to sit around regretting it. Right now I'm in the best shape of my life for this time of year and next season can't come around fast enough."

His first race since the Sydney Games (where he was eliminated in the 5,000 metres heats) will take place in Machester, Connecticut, next Thursday week. The Thanksgiving Day five-mile road race has been the traditional curtain-raiser to Carroll's season for a couple of years now and like before, he will use the race as the first test of his progression since resuming training.

"The basework that I'm doing at the moment has already put me ahead of anything I've done in previous years. Last year was quite a good year if you take out Sydney, but the main thing is that I still feel there is more to come. I still haven't reached my full potential."

Winning the European Indoor 3,000 metre title and breaking John Treacy's long standing national 10,000 metre record were just two of many highpoints achieved by Carroll last year. He also won the Wannamaker Mile, ran the third fastest outdoor mile ever by an Irishman, and improved his 1,500 best to 3:34.91.

The race in Dunleer is sure to provide Carroll with a strong test of cross-country form (last year's winner Million Wolde of Ethiopia went on to win the Olympic 5,000 metres). Already teams from the US, England and Scotland are committed. Carroll's intention is to make a significant statement of his form so that he will be selected for the World Championships in Dublin. There he will focus on the short-course event, where Ireland could have one of its strongest teams in recent years.

"The timing of Dunleer this season couldn't be better," says Carroll's coach Jimmy Harvey. "He will be home for Christmas anyway but it's also important that he makes it clear to himself and others that he is in shape to run well in the World Championships."

Gaelic Games: The Higher Education Leagues for hurling and Gaelic football will again be sponsored by Analog Devices in the 2000/2001 season. The competition involves all of Ireland's third level colleges.