James O’Connor, who led Ballyhale Shamrocks to the brink of All-Eire membership glory final February, is about to change into the subsequent Waterford minor hurling supervisor.
he former Deise defender has been really helpful for the place and his title will go earlier than membership delegates for ratification on the subsequent county board assembly, the Waterford Information & Star reported on Friday night.
O’Connor stepped down as Ballyhale boss within the wake of their heartbreaking All-Eire SHC defeat, denied within the dying seconds by a spectacular Harry Ruddle objective to grab the title for Waterford kingpins Ballygunner.
The Lismore man boasts a formidable CV at membership stage. Succeeding Henry Shefflin as supervisor, he led Ballyhale to a brace of Kilkenny SHC triumphs in addition to a Leinster membership title final winter.
He had beforehand guided Carrigtwohill to the Cork SHC summit in 2011 and led one other Cork membership, Fr O’Neills, to an All-Eire intermediate closing in 2020. Having departed Shamrocks, he took up one other Leeside beat, managing senior outfit Midleton.
As a participant, O’Connor captained Waterford to Munster U-21 success in 1994.
His backroom workforce with the Waterford minors will embrace Gavin O’Brien (Roanmore) and Seamus Hannon (Ballyduff Higher).
The minor hurling choice committee comprised Waterford chairman Sean Michael O’Regan, county secretary Pat Flynn, CEO of Nemeton TV Irial Mac Murchú and former Déise participant Brian O’Halloran.
In the meantime, Michael Murphy from Fenor is poised to handle the Waterford minor footballers in 2023, assisted by Mark Nugent (Dunhill), Dale Lengthy (The Nire), Des Kennedy (Gaultier) and Austin Dunne (De La Salle).
