Niall Rigney has stepped down as Laois hurling boss in the wake of last Saturday's surprise All-Ireland championship exit at the hands of Carlow.

The Portlaoise man had been at the helm for two full seasons, having succeeded Damian Fox midway through 2008. Rigney, who had served as a selector under Fox, guided Laois to McCarthy Cup safety later that season before masterminding last summer's shock victory over Antrim.

The O'Moore County subsequently lost to Limerick after coming within minutes of causing a major upset.

This year saw Laois pick up five wins in Division 2 of the NHL as well as claiming the Walsh Cup Shield. A first round Leinster championship victory over Carlow was followed by defeats to Dublin and Carlow, and Rigney has now decided to step away from the post.

The Laois county board today issued a statement thanking Rigney for his work with the team: "Laois GAA would like to acknowledge the huge contribution he has made to Laois hurling over the past two seasons. As a player he hurled with a distinct pride and passion in the county jersey and these were attributes he brought to the Laois team during his managerial tenure.

"Further credit to his management is that he had all the best players he required available to hurl with the county, working extremely hard in changing attitudes and developing a specific style of play. The commitment and work of management team PJ Peacock and Bro. Phil Ryan is also deserving of thanks for their huge endeavours."

The statement concluded: "Coiste Iomán meet with clubs next Thursday week to review all aspects and structures of Laois hurling, whereby opinions will be taken on board by Coiste Bainistí who will decide following this meeting on the process of appointing a new management structure." Tweet

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