Cunningham appointed Super Cup assistant
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Kenny Cunningham has been appointed assistant manager of the Airtricity League XI by Damien Richardson for the forthcoming Dublin Super Cup tournament.
Cunningham, who captained and appeared over seventy times for his country, will assist Richardson in his preparations of the Airtricity League select, and for their fixtures against Manchester City and Celtic. Cunningham has very little managerial experience but his tactical knowledge and motivating nature could prove the decisive factor in the Irish representatives causing an upset at the end of the month.
Richardson’s friendship with Cunningham goes back to their previous engagements on RTE Radio and television broadcasts, and the ex-Cork City boss believes Kenny will prove a real asset to the side.
“For a tournament of this nature, experience will be one of the key ingredients on and off the park. Kenny Cunningham brings vast experience of top level football in all parts of the world and that will be invaluable to the Airtiricity League team as we face up to a daunting task against two of the top teams in Europe,” said Richardson.
“I’ve come to know Kenny quite well through working with him for RTE Radio and I’ve found him to be a very positive and calm individual. As an ex-Republic of Ireland international team captain, he’ll know exactly what will be required in a high calibre competition of this nature.”
While Cunningham had no experience in playing with an League of Ireland side at senior level, he has always had a firm interest in proceedings in his homeland. Damien Richardson thinks that this is vital. “Kenny always held a great interest in Irish professional football and he’s attended many games this season, some that I’ve attended with him, and he’s developed his knowledge of the players here through his work with MNS.”
Kenny played schoolboy football with Home Farm and Tolka Rovers before landing in London to join Millwall. From here, the centre-half joined Wimbledon, before making the move to the midlands to play under Steve Bruce at Birmingham City. After four years at St. Andrews, he moved north to tackle a new challenge with Sunderland. He spent his remaining years as a Black Cat before retiring from football in 2007.
The forty year old has since turned his attention to punditry and football management. His most recent coaching job was with non-league Nuneaton Town. He is rapidly gaining his qualifications, picking up knowledge about domestic affairs as he does it. “I’ve done my UEFA A licence and Pro-Licence in Dublin and have come to know many of the managers in the league through that so I’ve been up to speed with what has been going on in the Airtricity League,” explained Cunningham.
This seemed like a very good opportunity for Cunningham and he didn’t have to think twice when called upon. “I saw the tournament advertised before I got the call from Damien to work with him and I thought it captured the imagination. With the likes of Manchester City, Inter Milan and Celtic involved, you are talking massive names. When Damien invited me to work with the squad I was really excited about what he had to say. To be working with the players in the days building up to the tournament and then in the games themselves was too good an opportunity to turn down.”
The team of Richardson and Cunningham have now just over three weeks to complete their preparations for the visit of the giants of world football. Their first match is against Manchester City on July 30th in the Aviva Stadium.
Cunningham, who captained and appeared over seventy times for his country, will assist Richardson in his preparations of the Airtricity League select, and for their fixtures against Manchester City and Celtic. Cunningham has very little managerial experience but his tactical knowledge and motivating nature could prove the decisive factor in the Irish representatives causing an upset at the end of the month.
Richardson’s friendship with Cunningham goes back to their previous engagements on RTE Radio and television broadcasts, and the ex-Cork City boss believes Kenny will prove a real asset to the side.
“For a tournament of this nature, experience will be one of the key ingredients on and off the park. Kenny Cunningham brings vast experience of top level football in all parts of the world and that will be invaluable to the Airtiricity League team as we face up to a daunting task against two of the top teams in Europe,” said Richardson.
“I’ve come to know Kenny quite well through working with him for RTE Radio and I’ve found him to be a very positive and calm individual. As an ex-Republic of Ireland international team captain, he’ll know exactly what will be required in a high calibre competition of this nature.”
While Cunningham had no experience in playing with an League of Ireland side at senior level, he has always had a firm interest in proceedings in his homeland. Damien Richardson thinks that this is vital. “Kenny always held a great interest in Irish professional football and he’s attended many games this season, some that I’ve attended with him, and he’s developed his knowledge of the players here through his work with MNS.”
Kenny played schoolboy football with Home Farm and Tolka Rovers before landing in London to join Millwall. From here, the centre-half joined Wimbledon, before making the move to the midlands to play under Steve Bruce at Birmingham City. After four years at St. Andrews, he moved north to tackle a new challenge with Sunderland. He spent his remaining years as a Black Cat before retiring from football in 2007.
The forty year old has since turned his attention to punditry and football management. His most recent coaching job was with non-league Nuneaton Town. He is rapidly gaining his qualifications, picking up knowledge about domestic affairs as he does it. “I’ve done my UEFA A licence and Pro-Licence in Dublin and have come to know many of the managers in the league through that so I’ve been up to speed with what has been going on in the Airtricity League,” explained Cunningham.
This seemed like a very good opportunity for Cunningham and he didn’t have to think twice when called upon. “I saw the tournament advertised before I got the call from Damien to work with him and I thought it captured the imagination. With the likes of Manchester City, Inter Milan and Celtic involved, you are talking massive names. When Damien invited me to work with the squad I was really excited about what he had to say. To be working with the players in the days building up to the tournament and then in the games themselves was too good an opportunity to turn down.”
The team of Richardson and Cunningham have now just over three weeks to complete their preparations for the visit of the giants of world football. Their first match is against Manchester City on July 30th in the Aviva Stadium.
About Andrew Cunneen
Andrew joined Extratime for the 2010 season and covers all the on-goings down in Limerick. Having first experienced the League of Ireland in 2002, Andrew became hooked, even at such an early age. He is … View Full Profile