Waterford hurlers have let their management team down – just like they let a host of managers down in previous years, according to RTÉ hurling analyst, Jackie Tyrrell.
Waterford went out of the 2023 Munster Senior Hurling Championship with a whimper on Saturday evening at Semple Stadium as they were overran by a Clare side shorn of one of its most potent weapons, forward Aidan McCarthy.
Manager Davy Fitzgerald, in his second stint in the Déise hotseat, is sure to come under pressure after his side's calamitous summer. But former Kilkenny ace Tyrrell insists that the men on the pitch should carry the can for years of inconsistency which has seem them "down tools" on successive managers.
"It’s the easy narrative to blame Davy and they will come in for criticism," Tyrrell said on the Saturday Game. "This Waterford team have let this management team down badly. They let Liam Cahill down badly. You think of last year, they downed tools against Clare last year down in Ennis – not good enough.
"Against Cork a couple of weeks ago, they downed tools, they gave up again. It’s a strong statement, but questions need to be asked of the leadership of that group. No consistency over the last number. It can’t be Davy Fitz’s fault, it can’t be Liam Cahill’s fault, it can’t be Derek McGrath’s fault and it can’t be Pádraig Fanning’s fault. Those players need to answer questions.
Tyrrell’s fellow analyst, former Tipperary keeper Brendan Cummins, was largely in agreement. Cummins feels there is a lack of leadership within the group and their frustrations will only continue until that is addressed.
"If you’re a Waterford player, tonight you’re saying 'what am I doing here?’," said Cummins. "There’s a complete lack of leadership within the group. You can blame the manager. And Davy will understand that. Liam Cahill and Pádraig Fanning before that, they all understand that it falls on your shoulders.
"But I saw it during the league and I think it was something that Davy was trying to work on – get the ball, run forward six steps, that was one of the mantras that they had. I could see it throughout the league. But after the Limerick game, that all stopped.
"Below in Páirc Uí Chaoimh, they were getting the ball, standing up, going sideways, going backwards. There was no punch or drive. When you get the ball and drive on, other run with you, so there was no wave.
"Waterford’s superpower has always been their athleticism. They all run with complete passion. That’s not there. You can see that people have voted with their feet. Today in Thurles, it wasn’t exactly packed with Waterford supporters. Páirc Uí Chaoimh was exactly the same after having a good result against Limerick, even though they lost, so it has fizzled out down there, but they need to get together now."
"It takes no skill to run and chase, that’s what we always say in a dressing-room. When the running and chasing has stopped, then the group need to get together and say ‘how are we going to fix this?’"
