O'Sullivan, Hayes and Ryan named as Cork senior football selectors

NEW Cork senior football coach Ronan McCarthy has finalised his selection team which sees Eamonn Ryan, Sean Hayes and Ciarán O’Sullivan come on board as selectors.

Announcing the appointments, County chairman Ger Lane said, ‘I’m very pleased to see such highly qualified people take on these important roles. Having management teams in place at this early stage will be very beneficial in preparation for the coming year.

‘Eamonn, Sean and Ciarán bring a wealth of experience and knowledge with them to this role and I wish them every success.’

Sean Hayes has also been appointed as coach to the Cork U20 football team, providing a vital link between this grade and the senior team. Selectors will be announced in due course.

Eamonn Ryan (Glenville/Watergrasshill): An outgoing selector under Peadar Healy, Eamonn is a former Cork footballer who coached the Cork ladies football team to ten All-Ireland titles. He played football with Glenville and UCC and was a member of the Cork senior inter-county team from 1963 to 1968 and managed the team in the mid-1980s.

Sean Hayes (Nemo Rangers): Cork U21 coach for the last four years, guiding the team to an All-Ireland final in 2016 in which they were narrowly beaten by Mayo. At club level, Hayes is a three-time All-Ireland medalist with Nemo Rangers, along with five county senior championships. Sean also played U21 for Cork in 1980 and 1981, captaining the All-Ireland winning team in 1981.

Ciarán O’Sullivan (Urhan): A Cork senior footballer from 1993 to 2005, Ciarán was regarded as one of the best wing backs to ever play for the county. Played on the losing sides of ’93 and ’99. He was selected on the 1999 All-Stars team and served as a selector with Brian Cuthbert in 2014 and 2015.

Also, Bobbie O’Dwyer (Macroom) has been named as coach to the Cork minor team (U17) for a two-year term.  His selectors will be announced when finalised.

A former Cork minor footballer from Urhan, Bobby Dwyer travelled abroad for some time before returning to Cork and settling in Macroom. He has trained O’Donovan Rossa and Legion in Kerry as well as his current club, Macroom. A bank manager at AIB in Killarney, he has been very involved in underage development squads in recent years and this work has now been recognised with this prestigious appointment.

‘This is an important age group for Cork to build on if we are to have successful U20 and senior teams into the future,’ Lane said.

The chairman also complimented Sean Hayes for taking on the dual role of coach to the U20s and senior selector.