Waterford GAA Thread - Mod note post #1

this aged well...

Right, and what do you want them to say? “Davy is an experienced manager who we think can bring Liam McCarthy back to Waterford”. That’s literally all they could say. The county board couldn’t organise grass to grow yet people expect them to all of a sudden pull a rabbit from the hat with a manager. There were no standout candidates available to us. Of those that were actually available, they were never available to Waterford. As much as I didn’t want Davy Fitz, he’s here now and there’s nothing anybody can do about it. I’m just glad Derek and his back room team consisting of his iPad and thesaurus didn’t get anywhere near it. Whether he was offered it or not is irrelevant, he isn’t the manager and that’s the only thing that matters.

I just can’t get my head around the fact that people think this appointment will set us back. I will ask anyone to tell me what setbacks he could possibly bring. Let’s be honest here Waterford were shît in the championship and despite looking like world beaters in the league we know now that meant nothing in the grand scheme of things. Cahill showed his hand too early and the players were probably burned out by April after being flogged on winter ground for 6 months. Fitzgerald is guaranteed to get a reaction from the players, he’s done it with us in 2008, Clare and Wexford. I’d be happy for him to absolutely rip into the panel and do what he wants with them for 8 or 9 months and see where we are then. If it doesn’t work it doesn’t work, but what else is there for us? As I said earlier, many men have tried and failed in the last 63 years.

Different dynamics here for Davy from the starting point in his previous roles. When he started with Clare and Wexford they were probably around 8 or 9 in the pecking order after a couple of disappointing seasons and supporters of those sides would give the benefit of the doubt in terms of style of play, sideline antics etc. if they saw an upturn in team performances. Then in his 1st Waterford stint he was young and fresh so benefit of the doubt was probably there too.

This time his card is marked, the public are aware of cult of personality you could say and to some has the ring of a money man given his TV projects. Also although things went very sour at the very end under Cahill culminating in the downing tools performance in Ennis their was plenty of uplifting days in his tenure playing exciting hurling so those memories are still fresh in supporters minds. A over prescribed gameplan not letting players express their talents to the maximum might not be tolerated.

Waterford return - Davy Fitzgerald begins the next chapter in his colourful career

https://the42.ie/5838362

I wonder if Shaun O’Brien will get a new earpiece for the puck outs?

Davy Fitzgerald on the radio there claiming he first arrived as manager after Waterford lost by 18 points to Clare. It was 9.

Don't get this talk he will set us back..Did anyone look at this year's championship we are very low...

Davy did an excellent job with Wexford, leinster final win and thd unthinkable the upper hand on the cats..

It is not 24 hours and the county is already totally divided, and i believe the County Board meeting last night a joy to behold. Sean Michael O'Reagan was talking on Damien Tiernan and has stated quite clearly that a committee was formed to bring a "recommendation" back to the County Board and to the Clubs - this would suggest that the clubs would have final say - but that was not the case - it was not a recommendation it was a "done deal". Clubs and Supporters are going to be called upon time and time again to provided financial backing and support and do in my opinion deserve better consideration and treatment than has been shown to them on this occasion

Davy would not be my choice by a country mile, but he is in now so I will give the team (and be extension Davy) my full support. There are however a couple of points to my mind that do need to made in respect of this appointment:

1. Davy is at this stage something of a journeyman and to most observers has been a surprise appointment - considering that to most observers, this Waterford Panel has an abundance of talent and potential, there appeared to have been very little interest ( or one could say a reluctance) of candidates / applications for the job, - It is time that some of our players at least, had a serious look at themselves and accept that there is something in their attitude that is holding them back - based on ability, they are a bunch that a host of qualified candidates should have been really interested in.
2. Davy is at best a short-term solution as he seldom lasts more that 2/3 years - ours is a long-term problem - so our County Board for once in their lives, need to be looking and acting for the long term future of our county and putting in place a "succession program" where we will not find ourselves in the exact same position in 2/3 years time. The same applies to the Development of Walsh Park - time to get finger out and get off the pot.
3. Davy (it is rumored) to be very focused on fund raising himself - we still need to ensure that he does not break the bank, as he is going to be generally looking to the Waterford Public and Diaspora for the funds, he is hardly likely to generate sponsorship and funds from people with no Waterford Connection and it is a limited pool, and given my previous point about the development of Walsh Park, resources are going to be stretched for the next couple of years
4. I hope he has matured over the years, but the evidence says he has not - this county and panel has courted enough controversy and media attention over the last 20 years to last a lifetime - we need to let our results and performances do the talking from hereon - we do not need the normal "media circus" that Davy generates, this needs to be made very clear to him at a very early stage. I do not buy int this crack about he taking the pressure off the team by getting the media to focus on him - that is rubbish as any controversy will reflect on the group as a whole

I do not doubt Davy's commitment or energy, he has vast knowledge and experience, but has he learned from his past mistakes - i have yet to see any evidence of this, or that his game plans have evolved or improved - i hope I am wrong- but either-way i intend being there to give him and the panel my full support.

And another thing to mention - people are complaining about whatever style Fitzgerald will have the team playing. We had 4 goes at Limerick in championship hurling in the last 3 years and came up well short every time, maybe a change in style is what’s needed because what was tried before didn’t work.

Of the four Senior Players mentioned, two of them missed full seasons within the last three years and Barron more or less missed the whole of last year, and we done alright. If you look at my previous posts i believe that we do have a regular pipeline of talent, ok not to the standard of that famous Minor / U21 All Ireland Winning side, but we are still unearthing talent each year. Conor Prunty, Calum Lyons, Daragh Lyons and Jack Prendergast played on a minor side who were unlucky but went nowhere in their grade. The point I am making is that we have to start a long-term plan to have someone in charge who is committed to Waterford and to the future of Hurling in Waterford, not some journey man who will come and go and only care abuot teh present. we now need to be looking to a future Waterford mane as manager

A lot of people have been saying how experienced Davy Fitzgerald is as an intercounty manager. Nobody has been asking how good is he, which is the crucial element. Good coaches/managers learn from their experience, but I don’t see much evidence that Davy has learned anything in his 18 years of intercounty management.

I came across a report on Waterford’s disastrous 2010 All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Tipperary on the munstergaa.ie website which had this to say: “Waterford [are a] team that all season had set out its stall to defend, to keep the score down and then count on the likes of their two marquee forwards, John Mullane and free-taker Eoin Kelly, to do just enough for them to win.”

Sound familiar? That’s just the way Davy had Wexford playing, with a sweeper and lots of hard (and exhausting) running. And that’s what he was doing with the Cork camogie team this year. It was amazing to see a team with their credentials employing a sweeper against Waterford, playing in their first semi-final in 63 years. They went 25 minutes without scoring, and were lucky enough to win in the end. They did the same in the final against Kilkenny and went six points down before ditching the sweeper. That cost them the game in the end.

Waterford have, in Dessie Hutchinson, Stephen Bennett, Patrick Curran and Austin Gleeson, four of the best forwards they have ever had. Michael Kiely, Pádraig Fitzgerald and Patrick Fitzgeralds have enormous potential. Are we now going to see another repeat of the Derek McGrath scenario where these will either be out around the middle of the field or not on the field at all?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeCuCwnLbzs

going to dust this off...

I am surprised to see that he has no back room team sorted. This would indicate there were no other serious options for the job wouldn’t it? All you ever hear about the interview process is the back room team a managerial candidate has ready to go if he gets the job. That aspect is slightly worrying.

Even with a season ticket I can't bring myself to have any interest in the senior club games today. Between streaming and attending I've been at 90% of matches for the last few years but this format means that today's matches (and arguably those of the past two weeks) are pointless.

It’s quite obvious Pat Flynn is the common denominator here. Hes well aligned with Davy having being the one appointed him back in 08’ and now as county secretary and interview panel I’d say no sooner had Cahill resigned than phone call was made from one old pal to another. There’s a job here for you mate as we have no fcuking clue otherwise.

I’d wonder was there anyone else even really considered from the outset.