Excerpts from the FAI press conference held in the early hours of yesterday morning.
Responsibility:As chief executive I take the majority of the responsibility for the role I played in that process and for the fact it hasn't worked out as we had hoped.
Commitments:We did have a four-year plan and there were assurances given to Stephen Staunton, but because of recent results and performances, we have been forced to change.
Outsourcing: I welcome the procedure to be put in place, that we will select people with considerable football experience in the professional game to appoint a new manager and I will not have a direct role in relation to the appointment.
Staunton's legacy:I think Stephen's contribution as a manager will have been the younger players.
A friendly parting:The important part of the night is that Steve and the guys came over and everything was finished in very much an amicable way. No doubt about that. I am pleased about that because there are human concerns.
Specialisation:I see my key skills as an administrator and I think I have proved that. I have proved it to the board and people within the game. I can now get on with my job as an administrator in the manner in which I have done, I think, quite well over a number of years and building on those successes. Football professionals will go and deal with the appointment of our next manager. That's the way it should be and that's the way it will be.
The next man:We probably need about a week and a half to reflect on the key criteria and the type of financial package we can afford. The most important aspect of this is to get people to do the job for us. That is the crucial point.
Staunton's future: It's a question for Stephen what he wants to do going forward in life. That's a question for Stephen Staunton to be honest. I know he is doing his Uefa A (coaching badge) at the moment and he obviously intends to finish off his pro licence at the end of that. He's a young man, younger than I am, so I'm sure if he wants to stay in football he will find opportunities in time.
The B team:Pat (Devlin) will manage the B team in Scotland for that particular game (in Airdrie on November 20th). It will then be a question for the new manager. Will he want to play B internationals? I hope he will. And then it will be a question of who he will want to manage the team.
The process:I think it will be a number of consultants who will be appointed. They will come up with one name. We will ask them to come up with one name. We will then ratify that regardless of any reservations. It will be completely external.
The precedent: I remember the one before (the process that led to Brian Kerr's appointment). I felt that this should be the way we go. We approached one or two people, ultimately it didn't work out and we ended up with Bryan Hamilton, who did a decent job.
The budget: I won't go into that because that will be our salary. But we are in a better position than we were a couple of years ago.
And Michael Cody on John Delaney's position: That was never an issue and never has been an issue. The three of us (Delaney, Cody and David Blood) were responsible for the appointment. In as much as it didn't work out, we are all responsible for that (but) we haven't made that many mistakes.
