Assessing Limerick Managers: Martin Russell

We continue our analysis of former Limerick managers this week. Martin Russell’s reign divides the opinion of supporters more than any other and it was also the most dramatic. During Russell’s near three year reign in charge, the club endured relegation and secured promotion in an eventful time.

We have already discussed the beginning of Russell’s tenure in which he won 50% of his games but with players like Kieran Djilali, Rory Gaffney and Lee-J Lynch at his disposal. I remember when Martin’s appointment was announced in 2014, part of me thought that the reasoning was financial. The Dubliner was used to working with young players at UCD and with little financial aid. Like others, I was of the opinion that he was brought in as the budget was going to be cut.

Initially, I threw that assertion out the window as the aforementioned players were brought in as well as Joseph N’do. However, the pre-season of 2015 proved that we may have called it right.

2015 Season: It was the beginning of an incredible season for the club. The likes of Danny Galbraith, Lee Lynch, Barry Ryan, Sam Oji, Rory Gaffney and Shane Tracy had all left the club following the end of the previous season.

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Furthermore, the club had left Thomond Park and temporarily returned to Jackman Park. But it wasn’t all bad news as Pat O’Sullivan had secured the return of the club to the Markets Field. This was the only reason that the FAI had agreed to allow the club to play in Jackman Park. The return to the “spiritual home of Limerick soccer” was greatly anticipated.

The budget had certainly been slashed and Oji in particular had voiced criticism of the club’s contract dealings before signing for league rivals Galway United. Oji had cited broken promises as his reason for moving to the west coast.

Young players Dean Clarke, Conor O’Donnell and Martin’s son Sean followed from UCD but the realisation that the squad badly needed an influx of experience led to the deadline day signings of an unfit Vinny Faherty and an ageing Aidan Price.

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On the opening night of the season, Limerick were heavily beaten by Bohemians and a 17 year-old by the name of Paudie O’Connor made his debut at centre-back. The substitutes bench featured Sean McSweeney, Kieran Hanlon and Val Feeney. With respect to the players mentioned, the step up from U-19 football to Airtricity League Premier Division is vast.

The first four months of the season were incredibly difficult. The Super Blues failed to pick up a victory in 22 games and attendances fell to 350 for a home game with Derry City in April. Not to mention, the club had banned the self proclaimed “Blue Army” from attending home games which led to the group holding protests outside the ground on match nights before the situation was eventually sorted.

No matter what challenges the new financial constraints brought for Russell, failing to win a match for the first 22 games of the season is inexcusable considering weaker teams have achieved the feat in the past. You think of the Kilkenny team at the beginning of the century and the Monaghan team of 2002.

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But the former UCD boss was intent on instilling almost “total football” upon his troops and it was clear that certain members of the squad weren’t totally comfortable. In June, the club returned to the Markets Field and it was a great occasion which saw 2,300 attend, among those were the President Michael D.Higgins and a plethora of players and supporters from the halcyon days of the early 1980’s. The playing surface was immaculate and the newly refurbished stand provided great comfort.

Fast forward to July and a game which signalled “last chance saloon” for this group of players as they hosted fellow strugglers Sligo Rovers at the Markets Field. At this juncture, the fear had turned from relegation, to being the first club to go a season without victory. In an error ridden affair, the Shannonsiders secured the vital win as we began to witness the emergence of the front three of Dean Clarke, Ian Turner and Vinny Faherty.

Crucially, Pat O’Sullivan realised the grave danger of relegation and acted by allowing the management team to sign Lee-J Lynch, Shaun Kelly, Freddy Hall and Patrick Kanyuka to bolster the squad. Although the latter did little to impress, the previous three players became key men as the Super Blues went on an incredible run which saw them take the survival fight until the last night, when they would need to beat Sligo and hope that Shamrock Rovers beat rivals Drogheda.

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The game was live on RTE and Russell’s men won a dramatic game 2-3 to spark wild celebrations. It really was the greatest of temporary escapes. The problem was that it was only the start. Limerick had to navigate two legs of a promotion/relegation play-off with Finn Harps. Having won the first game 1-0, Russell’s persistence with an underperforming Patrick Kanyuka cost the and the team dearly but

I attended the game and I vividly remember both teams warm-up. Finn Harps were rearing to go whereas Limerick’s warm-up appeared to lack any real intensity. The game played out in the same fashion as BJ Banda broke Limerick hearts to send the club back to the First Division.

2016 Season: You will have to forgive me for my lack of excitement and detail when writing about the club’s title winning season in 2016, the second in four years.

It is difficult to be overly delighted with the campaign due to the fact that so many matches were non events. At the end of the 2015 season, Pat O’Sullivan made a commitment to keep the vast majority of the previous years squad. O’Sullivan paid big money to do it. It ended in a full-time Limerick outfit thrashing many part-time and amateur teams in one of the worst First Divisions in living memory.

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However, we will focus on the positive and Russell achieved the minimum that was required and a quick return to the Premier Division having lost just one game all year. The attendances stayed above 1000 all year and there was a decent quality of football on display.

The team did surprise many with a run to the EA Sports Cup Final. The run was all the more impressive as Limerick had to significantly increase their work rate and productivity to beat Derry City in the semi-final at the Brandywell. The final was played at the Markets Field in front of 4,200 paying customers and was live on Eir Sport. The home side took the lead through Lee Lynch but were defeated 1-4.

It showed the potential if the Super Blues could challenge for European football on a regular basis. Excitement was rampant in anticipation of the 2017 season back in the Premier Division.

2017 Season: The 2017 season promised much and delivered little. In fact, it was the season where the decline of the club in it’s current guise began but we didn’t know it yet.

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Some quality players were signed including Bastien Hery, Brendan Clarke and Rodrigo Tosi and Limerick started in a blaze of glory with a 5-1 home win over Sligo on the opening night.

However, that was as good as it got for Russell and he left the club following a home defeat to Cork City. There were many that seemed happy with his departure but as it turned out, nothing improved.

Conclusion: During his reign, Martin was criticised for his lack of defensive structure but one thing he could not be faulted for, was the level of entertainment his teams provided whether good or bad. His teams always scored lots of goals but conceded quite a lot also.

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I cannot quite remember the name, but a former teammate of Martin Russell’s was once interviewed. He stated that their manager was critical of Russell’s attempts to play the ball out from his own area which led to the concession of a goal to which Russell replied “but when do we start to play.” This epitomised the Dubliner’s philosophy.

Unfortunately, the 2015 relegation campaign appears to be what Russell is best remembered for. In truth, the squad was weak until July when the Dubliner was afforded the opportunity to sign Lee-J Lynch, Shaun Kelly and Freddy Hall. The team’s form changed dramatically. However, the decision to leave Paudie O’Connor on the bench, a young player who went on to sign for Leeds, in favour of a clearly limited and out of shape Patrick Kanyuka, was a mind boggling decision.

Of all the managers over the last decade, he near three year spell was definitely the most dramatic and entertaining. His last stint in League of Ireland football was short lived at a cash strapped Bray Wanderers. Russell left when Bray players threatened strike action over unpaid wages and the former UCD man said it was impossible to manage the team at that stage.