Case over football manager adjourned for week

Longford Town Football Club is complaining that its former manager, Mr Stephen Kenny, breached a High Court order because he …

Longford Town Football Club is complaining that its former manager, Mr Stephen Kenny, breached a High Court order because he travelled on a bus with his new team, Bohemians FC, to a match between the two clubs last December, Mr Justice Kearns was told yesterday.

Mr Bruce Antoniotti SC, for Bohemians FC, said that he would be seeking clarification that the judge's order of Dec-ember 14th last never intended that Mr Kenny could not travel with his new team to the game in Longford. Counsel said that Longford Town FC was seeking a one-week adjournment of Bohemians' application for clarification and his side was consenting to that adjournment.

On December 14th the judge granted an injunction preventing Mr Kenny from playing any role in the preparations by Bohemians for an FAI Cup match between Bohemians and Longford Town the following day. The injunction also restrained Mr Kenny from attending the match except as a spectator. The injunction was sought in the context of proceedings taken by Longford Town challenging Mr Kenny's departure.

Yesterday Mr Antoniotti told the judge that his client had received a complaint from Longford Town that Mr Kenny's journey on the team bus to the December 15th game was a flagrant breach of the court order. His side would be asking the judge, when the matter came before the court next week, to say that was not what his order meant and that Mr Kenny had complied with the order.

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While noting that Longford FC was not present to make its case, Mr Justice Kearns said he had no hesititation in making it clear that his order was intended to restrain Mr Kenny from exercising managerial functions at the actual game.

He adjourned the matter for one week.

Mary Carolan

Mary Carolan

Mary Carolan is the Legal Affairs Correspondent of the Irish Times