Well, it's early days to be trying to predict the outcome and one would be very foolish to try.
What we do know is that there is a lot of interest from people both within and outside the county.
Indeed, one would be forgiven for thinking that the local elections had started early given the effort that a couple of locals are going to to get nominations. Those two individuals seem to be under the illusion that this is a popularity contest - well, clubs are not buying into it because the credentials for this job must not only be a capacity to manage people, but the person chosen must have the ability to coach. There is little point in bringing in a manager if he is unable to influence the style and quality of our play.
Historically, the top counties appoint their manager and they are responsible for the management and coaching of the team just as is the case with Brian Cody in Kilkenny and Gerald McCarthy with Cork and the majority of the football managers in the country also take on the dual task. After all, this is what sets these guys apart.
The day is gone for placing people in jobs where canvassing has been the order of the day. The clubs will play an important role in putting forward names, but this is where their job ends.
What's at stake here is the future of Limerick hurling. On many occasions previous County Boards handled the selection of management in a fairly deplorable way and some of the appointments made were very poor. This was particularly off putting at a time when some of the greatest hurlers in the county were wearing the green jersey. Many supporters and players haven't forgiven those officers and they will be equally unforgiving of the current County Board if the wrong choice is made this time around.
There is a huge onus on all concerned to get it right and some of the inklings that I am getting already suggest to me that there is quite a lot going on in the background and various people are starting to take up positions. That of course is their right, but the supporters of Limerick hurling also have the right and deserve that the best man for the job be appointed.
County Chairman Liam Lenihan has expressed the view that it should be a local and that view would be at odds with the views of at least five other board members that I have spoken to.
There may well be someone local who is capable and we can only await and see what happens, but it seems that the vast majority of people are very much open to the idea of someone from the outside coming in - someone with no previous association to the players or the county. In essence a fresh voice and hopefully someone with a ruthless streak.
I believe that the selection committee sat down for the first time last week and I have no doubt that the process will begin in earnest when the final list of nominations will pass through the secretary Mike O' Riordan following last Tuesday's deadline.
It's then that the real work will begin for the selection committee who will have to draw up the various questions to be asked to the nominees during the interview stage.
I wonder if it's necessary to interview everyone nominated if the selection committee feels that some of the candidates clearly don't have the necessary credentials to manage and coach a senior hurling team?
I think it's only fair that they should have such powers and they should also have the power to source a candidate themselves if, in their opinion, they feel that those nominated cannot deliver what they are looking for.
The candidates who are nominated will surely have to answer a wide variety of questions and that in itself should be fairly interesting, but one's ability to come through an interview process doesn't always guarantee that the right candidate will get the job and common sense will need to be applied.
What all hurling people in Limerick are looking for really is that the process will be honest and transparent because this selection committee has been charged with the responsibility of producing a person capable of leading Limerick hurling into the future.
In fact I would have to say that if the right person is chosen then he needs to be given the time to develop a team. Too often in the past managers were sacked and their replacements did nothing to bring Limerick hurling forward. Indeed, one could argue that some of them left having done detrimdamage to the players and the county.
While one or two outside nominees are the subject of much debate I am getting a sense that two or three people on the board have this issue thought out and they have determined the outcome before the process has begun. It's only a hunch and I hope that I am wrong, but various pieces of information have come my way that are leading me to believe such thoughts.
Either way it is unlikely now that the new manager will be selected for the September meeting of the board and one wouldn't be too concerned about that if the right person, with a clearly laid out plan and a proven track record as a coach, is selected.
It would be nice to have a new manager and selectors in place for the business end of the hurling championship, and hopefully all concerned will approach the task that lies ahead for them with definite goals and that Limerick hurling will be the real beneficiary in the long term.
Various names are already in the pot and included among them is former manager Tom Ryan who has been nominated by his club Ballybrown.
Ryan is a tough campaigner and has, in the past, had an uneasy relationship with the County Board. He has strong views and won't be slow to speak his mind and let rip when the need arises.
Tony Considine has also got numerous nominations from clubs and is seen as a strong contender.
Likewise, Richie Bennis, who has got the support of his club Patrickswell and who is to say that he will not return to the post just vacated? There is no denying that he has the passion for the job, but will the form of 2008 come against him?
Other contenders such as Gerry Molyneaux and Ciarán Carey have been busy and have made it known that they would like a shot at the big job, but with an experienced field they may find it difficult to survive.
The former Waterford manager Justin McCarthy could also enter the frame and I do know that at least one club was hoping that Anthony Daly would be considered. I doubt very much if Daly would be interested in the post and he seems to be enjoying his role as a pundit.
I was in Galway last week at the hurling board meeting and Ger Loughnane took questions from delegates for at least an hour and a half and, having spoken to some of the delegates prior to the meeting, if Loughnane fails to survive then a few of them did mention the name of Anthony Daly as a possible successor.
While that process should fall into place it might well be worth putting another committee together to assess the overall state of hurling within the county. The eventual new manager will have to work hard to put a winning team together and put that burning desire to win a Munster or All-Ireland title into the players, however, some of the games played in both the intermediate and senior championships thus far have been poor. It is obvious that some of the teams playing in the senior grade are just not up to it. Then you have the case of those coming up from the intermediate ranks and, while they may compete for a short while, ultimately they fail and return to the intermediate grade once again.
Is it worth considering having a senior B championship? This may benefit a lot of teams, but it might also play a part in the eventual winner of the senior B championship being much more capable of surviving in the A grade when they come through.
Such a suggestion may provide difficulties for a variety of reasons for the administrators and some clubs would not like the term 'B Championship' - they would rather scramble for survival year after year and ultimately they are going nowhere.
I do know that such a championship exists in other counties and it has proven to be beneficial.
It may be worth consideration because anything that would improve the standards in both codes would be gratefully appreciated by both players and clubs, but ultimately the real winners could be the county team set-up.
One would have to question the time scale between games in the current championship. Of course Mickey O'Sullivan, the chairman of the CCC has a huge number of games to organise, but one only has to look at the senior hurling championship and the likes of Kilmallock, who haven't played for weeks, and teams like them are ultimately penalised for winning their games.
Making fixtures is never easy and those charged with the task will always be accused of getting it wrong.
Long term the whole area of fixtures will prove to be a difficulty. There needs to be some solid structure put in place in relation to fixtures so that clubs and players can plan accordingly both family and holiday time.
I do know that O'Sullivan and his committee met clubs at the beginning of the season to try and put some shape on the fixtures scene, but it may take more refining and the support of all concerned to address what is a difficult task at the very best of times.