John Kiely, Anthony Daly and Ciarán Carey are among the early front runners to replace TJ Ryan as Limerick senior hurling manager after he officially confirmed his departure from the post.
The Treaty men exited the 2016 Championship at the weekend when they came out second best in the Munster duel with Clare in the second round of the hurling qualifiers.
In a dogged performance in Thurles, Limerick lost by four points but were for large periods very much second best to the 2013 All-Ireland champions and a bitterly disappointed Ryan hinted afterwards that he was unlikely to seek a fourth year in charge.
Ryan led Limerick to the 2014 All-Ireland semi-final in his first year in charge, but in the past two years has seen his side knocked out before the quarter-finals and unable to secure promotion from Division 1B in the Allianz League.
Last night the Limerick County Board confirmed his resignation and thanked the former player “for his commitment and time given over his three year term”.
We would like to thank TJ Ryan for all he has done both for our club and Limerick,everything he did was done with honesty and integrity
— Garryspillane GAA (@GarryspillaneGA) July 11, 2016
A number have names have been linked with the post, including All-Ireland U-21 hurling winning manager John Kiely and current Limerick minor coach and former Clare and Dublin senior manager Anthony Daly.
Ciarán Carey, who has impressed in charge of the Kerry hurlers and reached two All-Ireland finals with the Treaty men as a player, is another touted as a potential replacement.
