*Alan Cunningham. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
CLARE COACHES have returned to the roles with the Limerick senior hurlers and footballers for 2026.
Limerick GAA have confirmed that John Kiely will remain in charge for a tenth season while Jimmy Lee will enter his third year in charge of the Treaty County’s senior footballers.
Shannon’s Alan Cunningham is returning as part of Kiely’s management. The former principal of St Caimin’s Community School has been part of the Limerick management since 2017.
Cunningham coached Na Piarsaigh to win their first and only All-Ireland club title in 2016. A former Clare hurler, he had been coach to Clare’s senior hurlers on two occasions, first during Anthony Daly’s tenure and again under Mike McNamara.
He was coach of the Offaly senior hurlers when Ollie Baker was in charge of the Faithful County in 2012 and 2013. He has been involved with Wolfe Tones for the past two seasons, guiding their intermediate success and then consolidating their senior status this year.
Regarded as one of the greatest coaches in the game, Paul Kinnerk will remain an integral part of Kiely’s management. Kinnerk’s parents are from West Clare, his mother hails from Kilkee and is father is from Doonbeg, they reside in Cratloe. Paul was coach of the Clare senior hurlers who won the All-Ireland SHC in 2013 and coached the county’s U21 hurlers to win three Munster and All-Ireland U21 titles from 2012 to 2014 following on from their Munster minor success in 2010.
Kinnerk formerly taught at St Caimin’s Community School in Shannon where Cunningham recommended him to Donal Moloney and Gerry O’Connor when they were looking for a coach to the Clare minor hurlers.
During their time involved with the Limerick senior hurlers, Kinnerk and Cunningham have played a vital part in the Shannonsiders winning five All-Ireland and six Munster titles.
Quilty’s Evan Talty is returning for a second season with the Limerick footballers. A nine-time Clare SFC winner and two-time Munster club medallist with Kilmurry Ibrickane, Talty had been touted as a potential addition to Paul Madden’s Clare management given his rising standing within the inter-county coaching ranks.
His title with Limerick is that of skill acquisition coach and it is the only one of its kind with an inter-county team in Ireland.
In his first season with Limerick, Talty helped them to secure promotion to Division 3 of the Allianz National Football League and they were narrowly defeated by Kildare in the Tailteann Cup final. In 2024, he was coach of the Roscmmon U20 footballers who were crowned Connacht champions. He also managed the Clare intermediate ladies footballers and coached the Galway senior ladies football side.
Evan won a Tommy Murphy Cup with the Clare footballers in 2004 and he is the founder of Wild Irish Seaweeds.
Dylan Kenny of Labasheeda is remaining on board as S&C coach with the Limerick footballers. He had worked alongside Rob Mulcahy with the Clare senior footballers and is a masters graduate from Setanta College. He is currently an Athletic Development Coach with Setanta College.
A footballer with Shannon Gaels, he won a Division 4 league title with the club this year before their Clare IFC quarter-final exit. Kenny was also part of the St Joseph’s Miltown management for the past three seasons.
Former Clare S&C coach Micheál Cahill remains as Head Coach with Limerick. The Mungret man had been S&C coach for Clare’s senior footballers in 2012 and 2013 under Micheál McDermott and Mick O’Dwyer before returning for Colm Collins’ final season at the helm in 2023.
