Fleury to step aside in Offaly

Pat Fleury will not be seeking reappointment for a second term as Offaly senior hurling manager. After just one year in charge, Fleury has told the county board that he and his selectors, Pat Cleary and Ger Coughlan, will not put their names forward for another year.

It was a season of contrasting fortunes for Fleury's management team. The second-half collapse against Kilkenny in the Leinster final, where they eventually lost 2-21 to 1-13, brought about the lowest of lows in a number of years.

But a month later, in the semi-final, they disposed of the All-Ireland champions Cork after coming through the back door following a difficult tussle with Derry. That set up the All-Ireland rematch with Kilkenny, where they were comprehensively beaten by 13 points.

Fleury has not given any precise reason for his decision to step aside, but there had been some indications in the later stages of the season when everything in the camp wasn't going as smoothly as possible.

The chairman of the Offaly County Board, Brendan Wall, will now name a selection committee who will set about finding a list of possible candidates as a successor to Fleury.

Elsewhere, Jimmy Barry-Murphy continues to leave a question mark over his future as Cork hurling manager. Speculation remains that the disappointment of losing the All-Ireland crown in this year's semi-final against Offaly may be enough to prevent him from staying in the post for another year.

A final decision, however, won't be made until the county board executive meeting in a fortnight.

Barry-Murphy has already named his team to face Limerick for the opening game in the Waterford Crystal tournament on Sunday, and he and his selectors remain fully involved for the time being.

Barry-Murphy was reappointed for another two-year term after the All-Ireland success of last season, so that he has another year at least in charge. If he decides to stay on, it will be his sixth year in total, but he has been involved with the county since 1993 if his term with the minors is included.

Meanwhile, Dublin is the only other championship hurling county without a manager. The county board has yet to appoint a successor to Michael O'Grady, who stepped down after four years in charge following the county's Leinster championship loss to Kilkenny.