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From left; John O’Regan Secretary of the Kerry District League; Seán O’Keeffe Chairperson KDL; Brian Ainscough CEO Of Kerry FC; Geraldine Nagle Vice Chairperson of KDL and Billy Dennehy, Sporting Director of Kerry FC at the press briefing at Mounthawk Park on Wednesday. Photo by Dermot Crean
WHILE the decision on Kerry FC’s application to join League of Ireland First Division will be made by the FAI in November, the people behind the new club are not letting the grass grow under their feet when it comes to funding.
At a press briefing on Wednesday at the Kerry District League headquarters at Mounthawk Park, it was revealed that final details on season tickets are being ironed out and they should be on the sale in a few weeks time.
The briefing was held to coincide with a delegation from the FAI visiting to inspect Mounthawk Park which will host Kerry FC’s home games. The briefing was also attended by Brian Ainscough, the CEO of Kerry FC and Tralee native Billy Dennehy, who is the Sporting Director of the club.
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It was acknowledged by Kerry District League Chairman, Sean O’Keeffe, that there was a considerable amount of work to do at the ground — in regards to the astroturf pitch, stand seating, press area, provision for away fans, capacity etc. — to bring it up to the standard required for League Of Ireland football.
“We have got a checklist from the FAI and we have to go through it. So that requires funding because of the upgrade required and Brian is working on that. In the short term, we’ll have to put in our own money because we won’t have the time to seek grants, but going forward we will be applying for grants,” he said.
At the press briefing and visit by FAI officials to Mounthawk Park on Wednesday were Adrian King, Licensing Officer with Kerry FC; Chelsea Noonan, FAI Development Officer for Kerry FC; David Lenane FAI Regional Manager and Sean O’Keeffe, Kerry District League Chairman. Photo by Dermot Crean
Secretary of the Kerry District League, John O’Regan, speaking at the briefing, advised people to act fast when season tickets go on sale as they’ll be snapped up fast, judging by the public reaction to the plan to enter the League.
Mr O’Regan said everybody will benefit from bringing League Of Ireland football to the town including restaurants, shops, bars and hotels as they hope to get the busloads of fans down from Cork, Dublin and all over the country to stay for weekends.
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It was made clear by Billy Dennehy that Kerry FC will be about nurturing the local talent in the county. He said the club will “provide an elite pathway for the young players of this county and this region.”
He said the club will be built on “what Kerry soccer has always been built on, hard graft”.
“We are going to try and create a community-based club, becoming self-sustainable as quickly as possible. As we can grow and develop in the medium and long term we can look at other resources that may be required to go to the next stage,” he said.
Kerry FC expect to have their completed licence application submitted to the FAI by September with a decision from the FAI expected sometime in November.
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