NEW Limerick FC manager Stuart Taylor has been promised by chairman Pat O’Sullivan that he will be given “total responsibility for all football within the club”. O’Sullivan stressed that the 38-year-old Scot would be given free rein over all decisions pertaining to the management of the team and players.
The chairman said: “He will get absolute 100% support from us. I am of the belief that you can’t give people the job of managing without making them responsible and accountable, but you must always give them the authority to do it.
“He will get that here in this club and as you know we’re very passionate about our football and we also have great respect for people when we give them a job. You have to give them freedom to do the job; otherwise they’re going around with one hand tied behind their back”
“It’s a full-time job for him and it’s a job where he will have total responsibility for all football within the club.”
O’Sullivan justified the two-month search for a successor to Pat Scully by highlighting the importance of selecting the ideal candidate to make progress with Limerick FC as they return to the Premier Division after a 19-year absence.
The club carried out interviews in Manchester for the vacancy after Christmas, with Taylor chosen as the right man for the job.
“We advertised through the European League Managers’ Association. We got a huge amount of applications and we wanted to do interviews. We only finished the interviews the week after Christmas. “[Club secretary] Kieran [Judge] and I have been working hard in the background to try and bring this to fruition. The most important thing for us to do was bring the right man to the table because I think it’s a critical stage for the club.
“We believe that the right thing for us to do was find the right person. We’re absolutely happy that we’ve done that. Kieran and I had a very simple conversation when we finished our interviews in Manchester. We were sitting in the car going back to the airport and we asked one another a simple question. We made our decision just like that. That’s why Stuart is here.”
Limerick FC will play their home games at Thomond Park in 2013 as they wait for work to be completed on the Markets’ Field prior to a switch to their former home ground.
O’Sullivan expressed his appreciation of the parties involved in securing the deal to play at Munster Rugby’s stadium.
“There’s a lot of work going on in the background for quite some time to bring this to fruition. I think it’s a reflection of how we as a club have tried to always do the right thing. Thomond Park, the IRFU and the tenant clubs have seen what kind of people we are and that we’ve always tried to be professional in everything we do.
“That has been very helpful in getting them to allow us to play our games there. I want to publicly thank everyone in Thomond Park, who are very open, transparent people; those in the IRFU and those in the tenant clubs.”
In addition to naming Taylor as their new manager, Limerick FC also appointed a new chief executive in John O’Sullivan.
The chairman has promised that, similar to Taylor, the new CEO will be granted full authority over decision making in his role
“There are no chiefs in this club. John comes in as CEO of the club with full authority to look at the administration structures within the club, make recommendations to the board and help us to plan our way going forward. John has a lot of expertise from his background in business and he was fundamental to restructuring Cork City. Those are two great strengths to bring to Limerick and we have been looking for a CEO.
“We’ve been talking about it, thinking about it, seeing a need for it to take the club forward because it’s a big business now. It has to be done right and that might not happen as quick as some people might like it to happen, but we believe that John’s appointment for us is really positive. We’d like to welcome John to the club and make him feel absolutely comfortable.”
John O’Sullivan takes over from long-serving CEO Michael O’Sullivan and he is excited at the future for Limerick FC, both on and off the field.
He said: “After speaking to Kieran and Pat, I can see that Limerick has great ambition beyond just what goes on in the senior team. It’s about youth structures and developing the community. That’s hugely inspiring and it’s something that every club should aspire to. It’s one of the reasons that I’m here. I can’t wait to get started and I think there’s a very bright future, on and off the field, for Limerick.”
Additional quotes from today…
“It helps if you get a board of directors and a chairman that are going to be supportive and loyal, which they certainly are here. I’m looking forward to working with them.”
