Defiant McCarthy refuses to walk away
Justin McCarthy last night defiantly vowed to remain as Limerick hurling manager despite increasing pressure to step down.
The embattled boss insisted he will see out the second year of his two-year term and accused members of last year’s county squad of plotting to oust him from his post since last August.
McCarthy omitted 12 members of last year’s panel from his 2010 squad and a further dozen players have withdrawn their services in protest, yet the Cork native is determined to continue with the players at his disposal.
He insisted: "I was given a two-year term. As it is, I’m in my second year and while the County Board and the delegates are backing me and I’ve a squad of players, I’ll keep going. Somebody has to be in charge.
"When you’re given a job, you can’t say you’re given the job for two years and then all of a sudden the job is not there for you. I’ve been passed by the County Board and the clubs, and voted in by a proper procedure."
McCarthy, speaking on RTÉ Radio, described complaints from last year’s squad about the poor lines of communication between players and management as ‘a good excuse’.
He claimed members of last year’s squad have refused to discuss any issues with him but insisted the door was open for any player to return.
"It’s not communication. That was a good excuse I think initially. As far back as August, some of the players were trying to get rid of us and didn’t want us on board because they had their own agenda.
"From that point of view, sometimes it’s hard to get through to people who mightn’t have an open mind about things.
"My track record is there over the years, certainly teams I’ve been involved with I’ve had great communication for them. I’d love to have the older players back and the door is open. We tried to discuss things with them and they wouldn’t answer our calls or won’t come face-to-face to discuss anything. That’s just a pity.
"It’s all about playing intercounty hurling at the end of the day. I think the players, whoever is in charge, should want to play for Limerick. They should want to be out there, trying their very best to be stars of the future and win trophies – irrespective of who is in charge.
"I think the nitpicking of managers here and there has gone overboard. I think they should get on with it and face up to it, say: ‘Right, we’ve a job to do’."
