Keely takes over at Shelbourne

Dermot Keely was yesterday confirmed as the new manager of Shelbourne, succeeding Damien Richardson who led the club to considerable success in the FAI Cup but paid the price for the team's failure to wrap up the championship last season.

The new man, who has enjoyed considerable success during his management career to date and who led Dundalk to the league title in 1995, will take the club's panel for training for the first time this evening when he will start their preparations for the forthcoming UEFA Cup clash with Rangers.

"To win the league within two seasons is the target," he said yesterday. "Otherwise there'd be no point coming to a club like Shelbourne." He made it clear that he did not envisage any major outlay on players. "No manager could come here and complain about the players at the club," he said. "Working out why they didn't win the league and putting it right, that's my job".

Keely will, as expected, have Mick Neville as his assistant at Tolka Park and the coaching staff is also expected to remain more or less unchanged. "That's the way I want it," said Keely yesterday, "there's no reason to change anything here, I just want to get down to work with the people who are already in place at the club, they're a smashing bunch of lads and I'm looking forward to it."