GOLF:DARREN CLARKE hasn't ruled out the possibility of playing his way onto this year's Ryder Cup team, but that didn't stop him being named as one of Colin Montgomerie's three vice-captains – alongside Paul McGinley and Thomas Bjorn – when Europe take on the Americans at Celtic Manor in October.

Clarke is in Lough Erne today competing in the “Duel on the Lough” exhibition match, but yesterday he was summoned to European Tour headquarters at Wentworth where he, McGinley and Bjorn flanked Montgomerie as the new, “experienced” backroom team assigned to help win back the biennial team trophy Europe lost in Valhalla, Kentucky, two years ago.

“It is an honour to work under Monty and be part of his team trying to regain the Ryder Cup,” said Clarke, a five-time playing veteran since making his debut at Valderrama in 1997 who has been on the winning side four times.

His most memorable contribution was on home soil at the K Club in Kildare in 2006 when the now 41-year-old played for Europe, and won three points from three, just weeks after his wife, Heather, died from cancer.

“The Ryder Cup is very special to all of us. We have all been on winning sides . . . in my time the spirit and camaraderie in the team rooms have been fantastic and we hope to generate that too,” added Clarke, who was first approached by Montgomerie two weeks ago and agreed to come on board at St Andrews last week.

Clarke may be a lowly 102nd in the world, but he has shown a return to form recently, winning the JP McManus Pro-am and finishing runner-up at the Scottish Open, which earned him a place at the British Open. What will he do if he plays his way onto the team in the coming weeks?

“Monty would want me to play, there’s no question. If I play well then I give him an extra headache, but right now I’m outside the team and delighted to be part of the backroom staff. One way or the other, I’ll be involved.”

McGinley and Bjorn always looked like natural selections, especially as they were opposing captains at last September’s Vivendi Trophy – Continental Europe against Britain and Ireland – when Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell were among the players to praise the Dubliner’s captaincy.

McGinley, who holed the winning putt for Europe at the Belfry in 2002 and played on three winning sides, says he is ready to take on the vice-captaincy role.

“I’m very much looking forward to working with Monty and feel I’m ready for the vice-captaincy role this time; I wasn’t two years ago,” said McGinley, who, along with Jose Maria Olazabal, accepted the same role under Nick Faldo in 2008 but later turned it down.

“On paper this is the strongest European team ever produced and I’m really looking forward to being part of that,” added the 43-year-old, who had another bout of knee surgery at the end of last year and has never looked like making the team.

Montgomerie was keen for Olazabal, tipped as a future Ryder Cup captain, to play a part again, but he was not considered as the Spaniard is suffering from rheumatic pain and hasn’t been closely involved with the players on tour.

“The Ryder Cup is about passion, commitment and will to win, and all three men I have named possess those qualities,” said Montgomerie. “Any winning team has fantastic support behind the scenes . . . these are the three that will help me, hopefully, regain the Ryder Cup.”

Bjorn has played in two winning teams before being embroiled in a row with 2006 captain Ian Woosnam when overlooked as a wild-card pick, ironically for Clarke and Lee Westwood.

American captain Corey Pavin has four in his backroom team.

“Colin must be quite a bit smarter to only have three,” joked Pavin, who has the beaten 2006 captain Tom Lehman, Davis Love, Jeff Sluman and Paul Goydos assisting him in Wales.

“I picked four because I wanted to have an assistant captain walking with each group in the four matches the first two days and to keep an eye on things.”

Montgomerie’s team will be finalised in six weeks, after the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles, when he will add three wildcard picks to the nine automatic qualifiers. With McIlroy and McDowell certain to make the team, and Pádraig Harrington favourite for a wild card should he not automatically qualify, that would make for five Irishmen being involved at Celtic Manor.