The manager of League of Ireland soccer club Cork City has taken High Court proceedings to prevent any move to dismiss him.
Damien Richardson, The Terrace, Curraheen, Cork, is seeking an injunction to stop Cork City FC Investments Ltd from removing him as manager. Mr Richardson has been manager of Cork City since 2005, when he signed a two-year contract.
Mr Justice Frank Clarke granted leave yesterday to bring the injunction application at short notice and returned it to Thursday.
Frank Callanan SC, for Mr Richardson, said his client feared his employers were about to terminate his employment with the club, which earlier this month had won the FAI Cup.
In an affidavit, Mr Richardson claimed there has been "a concerted and deliberate effort to undermine his position over the past number of months".
In March 2007, the club was bought by a UK investment firm called Arkaga, he said. Last August, after a series of negotiations with the club, he agreed a further two-year contract of employment with the club.
He said that contract included a new salary and a car allowance backdated to January 31st, 2007. However, when he was given a copy of the new contract on August 31st last, it did not reflect the agreement over the backdating of the salary or the car allowance.
He had spoken to the club's general manager, Aidan Tynan, and they had come to an agreement. However, he was never given any amended contract.
In early November, he had contacted Mr Tynan, informing him he wished to sign the new contract and a meeting was arranged.
However, at a meeting with two of the club's directors at Jurys Hotel, Cork, on November 9th, doubts about the contract arose. On November 15th, he was informed at a meeting in Dublin with a club director that he, Mr Richardson, did not have a long-term future managing the club. Mr Richardson said he told the director he did not want to leave.
He said he was also told at that meeting that the club did not intend giving him "a big payout".
Later that day, Mr Richardson claims that he was advised by a number of the Cork City players that a director had asked some of the players questions about his management style and had also sought their views on former manager Pat Dolan coming back to the club.
On December 1st, on the eve of the FAI Cup final, he had a meeting with the chairman of Cork City, Brian Lennox, concerning rumours about his future at the club, he said. He said Mr Lennox told him his position at the club was terminated.