Antrim seeking applicants for camogie position

By Niall Gartland

THE ongoing saga surrounding the contested position of Antrim senior camogie manager is set to rumble on following the decision of the county board to advertise the post on Monday evening on social media.

Carl McCormick – father of Antrim and Loughgiel camogie star Róisín – recently stepped into the breach as stand-in manager following the departure of Brian Kearney and Mark ‘Duck’ McFadden after less than three months in the post.

McCormick has managed the team for their opening two league games, the first being a victory over Down followed by a bruising defeat to Wexford on the road last weekend.

They played second fiddle to Wexford throughout in a particularly bad beating though it comes with the caveat that eight of their players, including top camogs like Róisín McCormick and Amy Boyle, had made themselves temporarily unavailable.

Those players are set to come back on board ahead of their round three encounter against Kerry this weekend, and it’s understood that the players would be keen on McCormick being appointed on a full-time basis.

However, a number of clubs wanted due process to be followed so the county board has decided to officially advertise the position for interested candidates.

The saga harks back to late last year, when team boss Elaine Dowds was informed that she would have to apply for her own job as the county board advertised all inter-county positions in the county. As events transpired, she was replaced by Antrim Intermediate managers Kearney and McFadden.

In another surprise turn of events, Kearney and McFadden stepped down a matter of days before their opening round league encounter against Down, and now it remains to be seen whether there will be another change or if McCormick will be installed on a permanent basis.