Soccer-Cardiff City appoint former Ireland boss McCarthy as manager

Jan 23 (Reuters) - Cardiff City have appointed former Ireland boss Mick McCarthy as their new manager until the end of this season to replace the sacked Neil Harris, the Championship team announced on Friday.

McCarthy twice coached the national team and led them to the knockout stage of the 2002 World Cup. He has also managed English sides Millwall, Sunderland, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Ipswich Town.

The 61-year-old's last coaching position was at Cyprus club APOEL Nicosia, a role he left on Jan. 6 after only two months in charge following a disappointing run of results.

"I'm delighted to be here," McCarthy told Cardiff City TV. "I'm thrilled by the opportunity ... we've got a good squad of players and I'm looking forward to getting down to work.

"I want to get the Club back to winning games and I want to get smiles back on the players' faces. If we do that, then we'll get smiles back on the fans."

McCarthy will be joined in the Welsh capital by assistant manager Terry Connor, while James Rowberry and Andy Dibble will continue as first team coach and goalkeeping coach.

Cardiff are 15th in the 24-team league with 29 points from 24 matches having lost their last five games. (Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru Editing by Robert Birsel)