BBC SPORT | Football | Internationals | Republic of Ireland



By John Sinott By BBC Sport Online

The Football Association of Ireland's technical director Brian Kerr has said he would be happy to succeed Mick McCarthy if approached about the job.

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Since McCarthy's resignation, a number of external candidates including John Aldridge, Bryan Robson, Joe Kinnear and Kenny Dalglish have been linked with the post.

It's interesting that the media have come out strongly for me

FAI technical director Brian Kerr

Kerr is viewed by bookmakers as an outsider, but the FAI's technical director, who is also charge of the association's various youth teams, has received backing from the influential Irish media.

"Of course I would think about the job," Kerr told BBC Sport Online.

"Any sensible person would think about being offered the chance to coach their national team, though the FAI certainly haven't approached me.

"I haven't shouted out about the job because that's not the way I operate.

"I've only ever once applied for a job and that was when I was at St Patricks Athletic and I went for the youth team job at the FAI, but I was under the impression that I would be able to combine the two."

Kerr managed St Patrick's Athletic for 10 years in the League of Ireland, before joining the FAI.

He then famously led the Irish under-16 team to the European championship title in 1998, the under-18s to the Europeans in the same year and a third-place finish in the 1997 world under-20 championship.

In five years in his role, Kerr has led teams to eight major finals, an outstanding record given his lack of resources.

"It's interesting that the media have come out very strongly for me. Whether the association sees it that way is a dfferent matter."

But Kerr added he thought the FAI might be making a mistake if the association appointed an overseas coach.

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"Mick McCarthy's team played a more sophisticated brand of football, but the team retained the essential competitiveness and aggression. That gave us an edge," he said.

"Whether a foreign coach could do that I'm not sure. Eriksson has been successful because he has managed to retain an English style. Maybe that is because the Swedes play a similar game."

Last week the FAI's preparations for the 2002 World Cup were slated by an independent report, but Kerr added expectations exceeded the resources the association had.

"There has to be a sense of realism. We're a small country, which doesn't have have a full time professional league.

"All the funds are generated by the national team. But if all the funding goes to the international team, what happens to the youth teams and the development of young players?"