Kildare County look set to fill the vacancy in the first division of the Eircom League next season after being invited to apply for membership at the organisation's a.g.m. in April.

Backers of the club, who were told on Wednesday that their bid - rather than Mullingar Town's - had been successful, must now set about hiring a manager and players, but one member of the consortium behind the venture expressed confidence yesterday that everything will be in place by the start of the new season in July.

"A well-known figure within the game has been advising us and he has already identified 25 potential players and four potential coaches, so we have a good idea of the direction we're gong in," said Jimmy Dowling, a long-time club official at Newbridge Town.

Dowling describes the relationship between the Leinster Senior League outfit Newbridge Town and the new entity as "similar, but not exactly the same as the one that exists between Home Farm and Dublin City".

The new club will be based at Newbridge's ground and several of those involved in the consortium have been involved with Newbridge for some time, "but there are other people too and a new board will be unveiled over the next couple of weeks," said Dowling.

In a statement confirming their decision, league officials pointed to the rapid development that Kildare has undergone in recent years as being a major factor in choosing the club rather than Mullingar Town, who had been pushing for league membership since last summer.

Those behind the new venture insist that the dramatic increase in population in the area is a key factor in their plan to join the league.

Dowling said: "A large number of league players already live in the county and the intention is that, in so far as is possible, we'll have a team made up of players who live here (Kildare) in the not too distant future."