Connect with us

Sport

Killarney man Diarmuid O’Carroll lands Premier League coaching role

Published

1 year ago

on

Diarmuid O'Carroll is the new lead coach of the Newcastle United U21 team. Photo: NewcastleUnited.com.

Killarney man Diarmuid O’Carroll has sealed a massive move to Premier League giants Newcastle United where he will take over as lead coach of the club’s U21 team.

O’Carroll, who hails from Ross Road and played for Killarney Athletic at schoolboy level, has made the switch from Scottish side St Mirren where he was assistant manager to Stephen Robinson. He previously held positions at Morecambe and Motherwell.

The ambitious 37-year-old has also been coaching the Northern Ireland senior men’s team under Michael O’Neill since 2023 and the IFA and Newcastle have confirmed that he will continue in that role in addition to taking on his new job on Tyneside.

Signing for such a high-profile Premier League club marks a major milestone for O’Carroll, who set off on his professional football journey as a highly-rated 16-year-old prospect with Scottish giants Celtic in 2003. Spells in Belgium, Iceland, England and Northern Ireland followed before he turned his attention to coaching.

“The club speaks for itself in terms of the size, stature and fanbase,” O’Carroll told NewcastleUnited.com. “It's a really exciting time now as well with the ownership and everything that is planned going forward.

“The opportunity to come in is something I would've never expected, but when it came across my desk, it was a really exciting one and a quick process.”

The former St Brendan’s College student said he will be placing an emphasis on player development and helping the club’s talented youngsters break through to Eddie Howe’s first team.

“People think it’s all about results but I’m extremely development focused. I always have been. That’s the element of the work that I enjoy. Of course we have to win games, of course we have to strive to be successful, but ultimately I’ll be judged on the development of the players. Trying to get players into the first team and trying to give them a lifelong career in the game. That’s something I’ve prided myself on and hopefully I can keep it going here.”

Newcastle United’s academy director, ex-goalkeeper Steve Harper, said he is “delighted” to have O’Carroll on board.

“He’s a young, progressive and ambitious coach, and will play a key role in supporting our talent pathway into the first team.

“We have gone through a rigorous process and in Diarmuid we have an exceptional coach and person joining us. I’d like to welcome him to the Newcastle United family.”

O’Carroll’s tenure as Newcastle U21 boss begins with a fixture against Blackburn Rovers in the Premier League 2 tonight (Friday) at 7pm.

Related Topics:
Advertisement

News

Home cup tie for St Paul’s could be epic

Published

3 weeks ago

on

7 November 2025

By

Paudie O’Connor National Cup (Round 1)

Utility Trust St Paul’s v GCU Brunell

Saturday 7.30pm

Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre

The St Paul’s women’s team will be hoping to get their National Cup adventure off the ground on Saturday when they welcome 2024 champions Brunell to Killarney. Tip-off in the Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre is at 7.30pm.

Paul’s have displayed some fine early season form, although their unbeaten start in the Super League came to an abrupt end last weekend when they lost to the Trinity Meteors in Dublin. James Fleming’s side weren’t at their best on the day but they were well in contention heading into the final quarter with the scores at 47-45 in favour of the hosts. The Meteors pushed on in the fourth, however, eventually running out 63-53 winners.

St Paul’s scorers on the night were Maisie Burnham (13), Tara Cousins (12), Lorraine Scanlon (12), Lovisa Hevinder (9), Denise Dunlea (5) and Leah McMahon (2).

The Killarney club are now joint second in the table alongside the Meteors with both teams holding a 4-1 record. Killester are top having won each of their first five games.

Paul’s opponents on Saturday, Brunell, have won three out of five league matches so far.

LAKERS

The Utility Trust St Paul’s Lakers have now won three of their last four games in Division 1 of the Men’s National League following an impressive home victory over Moycullen in Killarney.

Eoin Carroll and Jack O’Sullivan made significant contributions of the Boys in Black; Carroll hit 17 points and collected 13 rebounds while O’Sullivan had 14 points, 12 rebounds and some spectacular blocks.

Steve Kelly posted 30 points and the durable Sam Grant played every second, adding 21 points along the way.

The Lakers started well before the visitors found their footing and the sides went in level at the half-time break after scores by home captain Carroll. There was still nothing to separate the teams entering the fourth quarter (68-65) but buckets by Carroll, Pablo Murcia and Grant opened up a nine-point lead. Moycullen fought back admirably, however, cutting the deficit to just four, but Luke O’Hea’s charges held firm to prevail by eight (88-80).

Next up is a cup tie against the Tipperary Talons, a side they defeated by 30 points just a couple of weeks ago. The cup can be very different to the league, though, and they will need another solid performance to advance to the next round. Tip-off in in Killenaule is at 6.30pm on Saturday.

Attachments

Continue Reading

News

Chances of Kerry v Cork Munster final in 2026 decrease as Munster GAA delay seeding plan

Published

3 weeks ago

on

7 November 2025

By

After facing a backlash from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipperary players, Munster GAA have postponed their plan to keep Cork and Kerry separate in the 2026 Munster Football Championship.

The new seeding system – which gives the two highest ranked Munster teams in the National League byes to separate semi-finals – will now come into play in 2027, twelve months later than initially planned.

This will give Clare and Limerick a chance to earn promotion to Division 2 of the league, potentially overtaking Cork if the Rebels were to get relegated to Division 3.

Despite traditionally being the two main contenders for Munster football honours, Kerry and Cork haven’t met in a provincial decider since 2021. The Kingdom have won each of the finals since then (one versus Limerick and three versus Clare) by an average margin of 15.75 points.

More high-profile Kerry v Cork finals might be desirable for fans of those teams, businesses in Killarney and Cork, and neutrals alike but Munster GAA’s plans to effectively keep the great rivals on opposite sides of the draw understandably drew criticism from the other participating counties. A statement by the GPA confirmed that players from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipp had met via Zoom to discuss the matter. They were said to be “deeply disappointed and concerned” by the decision.

The 12-month delay will at least give two of those disaffected teams an opportunity to benefit from the new seeding process.

The draw for the 2026 Munster Football Championship will take place on November 27 under the old rules. As 2025 finalists, Kerry and Clare will get byes to the last four (but they will not necessarily be kept apart).

Nine members of Kerry’s squad are up for All-Stars at tonight’s awards ceremony in Dublin with Joe O’Connor and David Clifford also in contention for the prestigious Footballer of the Year award.

Attachments

Continue Reading