GAA:Ger O'Loughlin is expected to be ratified as the new Clare senior hurling manager after Mike McNamara stepped down from the position tonight.
In a hard-hitting letter, read out by county secretary Pat Fitzgerald, McNamara announced his decision to step aside at last night's Clare County Board meeting.
McNamara had met with up with many of the players who had formed his 2009 squad last week, but when the talks did not put an end to the divisions in the camp, McNamara was left with no choice but to step down.
While O’Loughlin was proposed to fill the now vacant position at tonight’s meeting, many of the delegates are believed to have expressed the wish to consult their clubs, and so the two-time All-Ireland medal winner has to wait until Thursday night’s annual convention to be ratified as the new county senior hurling manager.
The two-time All Star – who won five county senior hurling titles with Clarecastle – was a county selector under Cyril Lyons in 2003, and led Limerick’s Adare to three county titles in a row.