MAURICE SETTERS travels from Doncaster for talks with FAI officials in Dublin. today, insisting that he is still assistant manager of the Republic of Ireland team.
Setters has been invited to the FAI headquarters at Merrion Square to discuss his situation in the light of Jack Charlton's resignation last month.
The FAI's view is that since both men were part of the same ticket, the appointment of Setters lapsed automatically on the manager's departure but, predictably, it's not a view that is shared by the man who has been at Charlton's side, either at club or international level, for much of the last 20 years.,
"I have not resigned my position - nor have I any intention of doing so," he said. "It suited some people to assume that once Jack left, I would follow but that, from my viewpoint, was never a starter.
"The FAI employed me, not Jack Charlton and Jack's going should not necessarily affect my situation with the association. As I see it, they now have two ways of handling the situation but I repeat I have no intention of going to Dublin just to hand in my resignation."
Setters is thought to have been paid in the region of £50,000 a year, or, less than half of Charlton's basic salary. In addition to assisting in the preparation of the senior squad, his duties extended to looking after under-age teams, from schoolboy to under-21 level.
There are no under-21 fixtures scheduled for the second half of the season but the Republic of Ireland under-19 team has an important European Championship assignment against Iceland in March.
When Charlton agreed to bow to the inevitable and tender his resignation last month, he did so without any severance pay. As a self-made millionaire, a redundancy package was never an issue with him but the case of Setters, who has no income other than his FAI salary, is different.
At 60, his prospects of another appointment are not particularly bright and this, he feels, ought to be recognised in any severance deal with the Irish association.
Severance money has never been paid by the FAI to any national management team and the unspoken message at Merrion Square is that it would be unwise to depart from that policy now.
The FAI's Executive Committee is due to convene for the second time in 48 hours today to define the job specifications of Charlton's replacement for the next World Cup campaign. Also on the agenda is the selection of a sixth person to join the five honorary officers on the sub-committee which is expected to make that appointment within the next six weeks.
