FORMER Armagh star Ronan Clarke has been named as the new manager of the Armagh senior ladies' footballers.
The news is quite a turnaround for the All-Ireland winner and former young player of the year, who was badly injured playing for his club Pearse Óg back in August. Following a collision with a goal post in a club encounter, Clarke sustained a serious head injury and was, for a time, in a medically induced coma.
Clarke was ratified by the current county board selection team and chairman Owen Reel welcomed him into the new post: “Ronan Clarke will bring the same commitment and dedication to this Armagh ladies' set-up that he had when he played and we wish Ronan all the best for the incoming season of 2016,” he said.
The Pearse Óg man has selected his own backroom team and has named former Fermanagh ladies' manager Lisa Woods as his number two. His brother Conor Clarke will also form part of the team.
Clarke is taking over a strong panel of players in the Orchard county as they lifted the Division Two title this year, having also been beaten in an All-Ireland semi-final.
Previous Armagh ladies' manager James Daly has also expressed satisfaction at the appointment: “Ronan is an excellent footballer himself and will bring this great bunch of girls to the next level,” he said.
“Armagh ladies' are a team on the up and Ronan will use his own experience from his playing days and, with his coaching element alongside his experience in fitness, he will no doubt be just what the set-up needs”
