Davy Fitzgerald facts for kids
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish name | Daithí Mac Gearailt | ||
| Sport | Hurling | ||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Born | 2 August 1971 Sixmilebridge, County Clare, Ireland |
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| Occupation | LIT director of hurling | ||
| Club(s) | |||
| Years | Club | Apps (scores) | |
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1989–2011
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Sixmilebridge | 100 (4–9) | |
| Club titles | |||
| Clare titles | 6 | ||
| Munster titles | 2 | ||
| All-Ireland Titles | 1 | ||
| Inter-county(ies)* | |||
| Years | County | Apps (scores) | |
|
1990–2008
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Clare | 60 (2–0) | |
| Inter-county titles | |||
| Munster titles | 3 | ||
| All-Irelands | 2 | ||
| NHL | 0 | ||
| All Stars | 3 | ||
| *Inter County team apps and scores correct as of 20:42, 27 June 2013. | |||
David Carler Fitzgerald (born 2 August 1971) is a famous Irish hurling manager and former player. He is currently the manager of the Antrim senior hurling team since August 2024.
Davy, as he is often called, managed the Waterford county team from 2022 to 2024. He had also managed them earlier, from 2008 to 2011. As a player, many people think he was one of the best goalkeepers of his time.
Davy Fitzgerald started his hurling journey with his local club, Sixmilebridge. He joined the club's main adult team when he was just 17 in 1989. His biggest club success came in 1996. That year, Sixmilebridge won the All-Ireland Club Championship. Davy played for his club until 2011. During his club career, he also won two Munster Club Championship titles. He also won six Clare Senior Championship titles.
For his county, Clare, Davy was part of the minor team that won the Munster Championship in 1989. He then played for the Clare under-21 team. He joined the Clare senior team in 1990. From his very first game, Davy was always the goalkeeper. He played in 148 National League and Championship games. His playing career for Clare ended in 2006. During this time, he helped Clare win two All-Ireland Championship titles. These wins were in 1995 and 1997. Davy also won three Munster Championship medals. He announced he was stopping inter-county hurling on 31 March 2008.
Davy Fitzgerald won his first All-Star award in 1995. He won two more All-Stars in 2002 and 2005. He holds the record for most championship appearances for Clare. He played in 60 championship games. For inter-provincial games, Davy played for Munster seven times. He won Railway Cup medals in 1995, 1996, 1997, and 2005.
Even while he was still playing, Davy started coaching and managing teams at club level. He coached many Sixmilebridge teams, from young players to the senior team. He also managed Nenagh Éire Óg for a short time. Later, he became the director of hurling at the Limerick Institute of Technology. There, he won two Fitzgibbon Cup titles.
Davy's first big managing job for a county team was with Waterford in 2008. In his four years there, he led the team to their first All-Ireland final in 45 years. They also won the Munster Championship title in 2010. Davy then managed the Clare senior team for five seasons. He guided them to the All-Ireland title in 2013. They also won their first National League title in 38 years. After leaving Clare, he took charge of the Wexford senior team. He led them to win the Leinster Championship in 2019.
On 26 September 2019, Davy confirmed he would stay with Wexford for two more seasons. He had been linked to the Galway hurling manager job. However, he said he only spoke to the Wexford County Board. He left Wexford on 30 July 2021. He then started his second time as Waterford manager in August 2022.
Contents
Davy Fitzgerald: Hurling Star and Manager
Early Life and Club Days
Davy Fitzgerald's father, Pat, was very involved in Clare hurling. He was the secretary of the Clare County Board for 32 years. Pat Fitzgerald announced he would step down from this role in June 2022.
Playing Career: Club and County
Early Club Success
Davy played his club hurling with his local team, Sixmilebridge. He had a very successful career that lasted over four decades. He played in 100 senior championship games for his club.
He made his first appearance as a substitute in 1989. Soon after, he became the main goalkeeper. In his first season, he won his first county championship medal. Sixmilebridge beat Clarecastle with a score of 3–14 to 1–11.
In 1992, Sixmilebridge won the championship again. They narrowly beat Éire Óg by 1–11 to 1–10. This gave Davy his second county championship medal.
The team managed to keep their championship title in 1993. They beat O'Callaghan's Mills 3–8 to 2–6. This was Davy's third county championship medal.
They couldn't win three in a row, but Sixmilebridge reached the final again in 1995. They beat Scariff by just one point, 2–10 to 0–15. This was Davy's fourth county championship medal. "The Bridge" then played Nenagh Éire Óg in the provincial final. Davy scored a penalty, helping his team win 2–18 to 1–7. This gave them the Munster title. Sixmilebridge then reached the All-Ireland final against Dunloy. The Clare champions won easily, 5–10 to 2–6. This was Davy's first All-Ireland medal.
After losing the final in 1999, Sixmilebridge came back strong in 2000. They reached the county final again. Davy won his fifth championship medal by beating Éire Óg 4–9 to 1–8. He then won a second Munster medal. They defeated Mount Sion 2–17 to 3–8 in the provincial final.
Sixmilebridge lost their title in 2001. However, they returned to the county final in 2002. They beat Clarecastle 3–10 to 2–8. This gave Davy his sixth and final championship medal with the club.
Davy continued playing for Sixmilebridge until 2008, when he decided to retire. He came out of retirement in 2011 to play his 100th game. He helped the club reach the county final once more.
Playing for Clare's Youth Teams
Davy first played for Clare as part of the minor team in 1989. He played his first game on 19 April 1989 as goalkeeper. Clare beat Cork 7-08 to 0-07. On 2 July 1989, Davy won a Munster Championship medal. Clare beat Limerick 2-13 to 2-12 in the final. On 3 September 1989, Davy was goalkeeper when Clare lost the All-Ireland final to Offaly 2-16 to 1-12.
Davy joined the Clare under-21 team in 1990. He played his first game in this age group on 20 June 1990. He was goalkeeper in a 2-11 to 2-05 win against Cork.
On 15 July 1992, Davy played in goal when Clare faced Waterford in the Munster final. Clare lost that game 0-17 to 1-12. This was Davy's last game at the under-21 level.
Senior Hurling with Clare
Davy was still young when he joined the Clare senior team in 1989-90. He played his first game on 19 February 1990. He was goalkeeper in Clare's 4-10 to 1-11 win against Down. Davy played well and became the first-choice goalkeeper for the 1990 Munster Championship. His championship debut was on 13 May 1990, in a 2-16 to 1-05 loss to Limerick.
On 4 July 1993, Davy was goalkeeper when Clare reached their first Munster final since 1986. Clare lost to Tipperary 3-27 to 2-12.
After winning another National League Division 2 title, Davy played in a second Munster final in a row on 10 July 1994. Clare lost to Limerick 0-25 to 2-10.
On 7 May 1995, Davy played in his first National League final. Kilkenny beat Clare 2-12 to 0-09. Davy played in his third Munster final on 9 July 1995. Limerick was the opponent again. Davy famously ran the length of the pitch after scoring a penalty in the first half. Clare won 1-17 to 0-11, and Davy got a winners' medal. On 3 September 1995, Davy was goalkeeper when Clare reached the All-Ireland final for the first time since 1932. Clare won 1-13 to 2-08, and Davy earned an All-Ireland medal. He was also named on the All-Star team that year.
Davy played in his fourth Munster final on 6 July 1997. Clare beat Tipperary 1-18 to 0-18, and Davy won his second Munster medal. On 14 September 1997, Davy was in goal again when Clare played Tipperary in the All-Ireland final. Clare won 0-20 to 2-13, and Davy collected his second All-Ireland medal.
On 12 July 1998, Davy was goalkeeper when Clare drew with Waterford in the Munster final. He played in the replay a week later. Davy made an important save from a Paul Flynn free. Clare won 2-16 to 0-10, giving Davy his third Munster medal in four years.
After some tough championship seasons, Clare surprised everyone by reaching the All-Ireland final again in 2002. Davy's team played well against Kilkenny. However, Kilkenny's Henry Shefflin and D. J. Carey scored a lot of points. Kilkenny won by seven points.
Clare had some difficult years but bounced back in 2005. Even though they left the provincial championship early, Davy's team reached an All-Ireland semi-final against Cork. Clare led by six points at one stage. However, Cork fought back and beat Clare by just one point.
In 2006, Cork easily defeated Clare in their first championship game. Clare then won their qualifier group for the second year in a row. They beat Wexford to set up an All-Ireland semi-final against Kilkenny. Kilkenny defeated Clare once again.
In early 2007, there were rumors that Davy might retire. He had some disagreements with the new manager, Tony Considine. Davy was left out of Clare's National League team. Because of this disagreement, Davy also did not play in the championship. At the end of the year, Davy thought about returning to inter-county hurling. In early 2008, he did return under new manager Mike McNamara. He played a practice match against Kilkenny. However, a serious finger injury affected his play. After this, he decided to retire from inter-county hurling on 31 March 2008.
Playing for Munster
Davy also played for Munster in the inter-provincial hurling championship. He played alongside players from other Munster counties. He first played for Munster in 1993. Munster was surprisingly beaten by Ulster in the semi-final.
By 1996, Davy was the main goalkeeper for the Munster team. He won his first Railway Cup medal when Munster beat Leinster 2–20 to 0–10. He won a second Railway Cup medal in 1997, again beating Leinster.
After not playing for a few years, Davy was called back to the Munster team in 2005. He won his third Railway Cup medal when Munster beat Leinster 1–21 to 2–14.
Poc Fada Champion
Davy Fitzgerald has also been very successful in the famous Poc Fada competition. This event is held every year in the Cooley Mountains. He won the men’s senior event in 1999 and 2002. Davy has also won the pairs competition five times. He won in 1993 with Michael Shaughnessy, in 1998 with Seamus McMullan, in 2002 with Graham Clarke, in 2005 with Damien Fitzhenry, and in 2007 with Albert Shanahan.
Becoming a Manager
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Coaching at LIT
Davy Fitzgerald was the manager of the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) hurling team. In 2005, Davy's team won the Fitzgibbon Cup final. They beat their rivals, University of Limerick.
Two years later, LIT was back in the Fitzgibbon final. They beat the National University of Ireland, Galway 2–15 to 0–13. This gave Davy his second Fitzgibbon Cup as a manager.
Sixmilebridge and Nenagh Éire Óg
Even when he was playing, Davy was very involved in coaching. Since the early 1990s, he coached almost every team at his home club, Sixmilebridge. In 2005, he became the manager of the club's senior hurling team. This time was not very successful for him. Many new clubs became strong in the championship.
In 2008, Davy took over as manager of the Nenagh Éire Óg club team in Tipperary. After two losses, he decided to leave. He left because he had too many commitments as a county manager.
Coaching Different Teams
First Time with Waterford
After Justin McCarthy resigned, Davy Fitzgerald became the manager of the Waterford senior hurling team in 2008. Waterford beat Antrim, Offaly, and Wexford. Waterford had lost the All-Ireland semi-finals in 2004, 2006, and 2007. Davy led Waterford to a victory over Tipperary. This meant Waterford reached the 2008 All-Ireland final for the first time in 45 years. Kilkenny was the opponent. Kilkenny won easily, 3–30 to 1–13, to claim their third All-Ireland title in a row.
In 2009, Waterford had a tough National League. However, they still reached the All-Ireland semi-final against Kilkenny. Waterford played much better than before. But they still lost 2–23 to 3–15.
In 2010, Davy led Waterford back to the Munster final for the second year in a row. They drew with Cork, 2–15 each. In the replay, Waterford won the provincial title 1–16 to 1–13.
Davy's last season in charge had some good moments and some criticism. Waterford lost badly to Tipperary in the 2011 Munster final, 7–19 to 0–19. But they still reached a fourth All-Ireland semi-final in a row. Kilkenny stopped Waterford's All-Ireland hopes again, winning by six points.
After this loss, Davy told the Waterford county board he would not stay as manager. This ended his four years in charge.
Leading Clare to Victory
On 11 October 2011, Davy Fitzgerald was confirmed as the Clare senior hurling manager for three years. In his first season, Clare moved up from Division 1B. They beat Limerick in the final.
On 18 August 2013, Clare reached the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final. They beat Limerick 1–22 to 0–18 at Croke Park. On 28 September, Davy managed Clare to win the All-Ireland senior title. They beat Cork 5–16 to 3–16 in a replay. In October 2013, Davy was given another three-year extension. This meant he would manage Clare until the end of 2016. Clare could not defend their All-Ireland title in 2014. They lost to Wexford 2-25 to 2-22 in a qualifier replay.
In March 2015, Clare was moved down from Division 1A of the National Hurling League. They lost to Kilkenny 1-17 to 1-18. On 11 July 2015, Clare lost to Cork 0-17 to 0-20. This meant they were out of the 2015 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. On 14 July 2015, it was confirmed that Davy would stay as manager for the next two years. On 8 May 2016, Clare won the 2016 National Hurling League. This was their first National Hurling League title since 1978. They beat Waterford 1-23 to 2-19 in a replay.
Clare was knocked out of the 2016 Championship by Galway. They lost by six points in the quarter-finals on 24 July. On 21 September 2016, Davy stepped down as Clare Senior Hurling manager. He told the Clare County Board he would not seek to be reappointed for 2017. In a statement, Davy said it was a great honor to manage Clare. He was proud of their success. He decided to step down because of different opinions among the players. He felt it was best for Clare hurling.
Managing Wexford's Hurlers
On 7 October 2016, Davy Fitzgerald was appointed manager of the Wexford senior hurling team for three years. On 19 February, Wexford beat Galway 1-21 to 3-13 in the 2017 National Hurling League. This was their second win in two games. On 12 March 2017, Wexford earned promotion to Division 1A of the National Hurling League. They beat Offaly 1-17 to 0-15. On 2 April 2017, Wexford beat Kilkenny 2-18 to 0-19 in the league quarter-finals. This was only their third win against Kilkenny in 21 meetings.
On 16 April 2017, during a league semi-final loss to Tipperary, Davy went onto the field. He disagreed with the referee's decision. He was suspended for eight weeks by the GAA. On 10 June 2017, Wexford beat Kilkenny 1-20 to 3-11 in the 2017 Leinster Championship semi-final. This meant they reached their first Leinster final in nine years. It was also their first summer win against Kilkenny in 13 years. In 2018, Wexford won against Waterford, Clare, and Cork in the National Hurling League. They beat Galway in the league quarter-final but lost to Kilkenny in the semi-final. In the Leinster championship, they beat Dublin and Offaly. But they lost to Galway. Their final game against Kilkenny decided who would reach the Leinster final. Wexford played well in the first half but lost by one point. This led Wexford to a preliminary quarter-final against Westmeath. After winning this game, they faced Clare in the All-Ireland quarter-final. They lost this game 1-17 to 0-28. Weeks later, the Wexford players went to Davy's house in Clare. They convinced him to stay as manager. He said he wanted to take Wexford to "another level" in 2019.
On 2 July 2017, Wexford lost to Galway in the Leinster Final 1-17 to 0-29. They then played Waterford in the All-Ireland quarter-finals on 23 July 2017. Wexford lost this game 1-19 to 1-23.
In June 2019, Davy led Wexford to the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship Final. They drew with Dublin, Galway, and Kilkenny. They beat Carlow. Wexford reached the final based on scoring difference. This happened after a dramatic draw with Kilkenny. On 30 June 2019, Wexford won their first Leinster Senior Hurling title since 2004. They had an impressive 1-23 to 0-23 win over Kilkenny. This was Wexford's first win over Kilkenny in eight attempts. The game was played in front of 51,842 fans in Croke Park.
On 30 July 2021, Davy Fitzgerald stepped down as Wexford manager after five years. Under him, Wexford won one knockout match in the All-Ireland Senior Championship in five years. This was against Westmeath in 2018.
Back with Waterford and Antrim
On 11 August 2022, Davy Fitzgerald was appointed Waterford Senior hurling manager for a second time. This was for a two-year term. Under Davy, Waterford did not get out of the Munster Championship in 2023 and 2024. In March 2024, Waterford was moved down from Division 1A in the National Hurling League.
After two years in charge, Davy stepped down as manager on 2 July 2024.
On 12 August 2024, Davy Fitzgerald was appointed Antrim Senior hurling manager. This is for a two-year term.
Family Life
Davy Fitzgerald was married to Ciara Flynn. They had a son together. Davy had a second son 25 years later in 2022. This was after he married Sharon O'Loughlin in 2019.
Davy's Achievements
Playing Honours
- Sixmilebridge
- All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship (1): 1996
- Munster Senior Club Hurling Championship (2): 1995, 2000
- Clare Senior Hurling Championship (6): 1989, 1992, 1993, 1995, 2000, 2002
- Clare
- All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship (2): 1995, 1997
- Munster Senior Hurling Championship (3): 1995, 1997, 1998
- National Hurling League (Division 2) (1): 1989–90
- Munster Minor Hurling Championship (1): 1989
- Munster
- Railway Cup (3): 1996, 1997, 2005
Managerial Honours
- Limerick Institute of Technology
- Fitzgibbon Cup (2): 2005, 2007
- Waterford
- Munster Senior Hurling Championship (1): 2010
- Clare
- All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship (1): 2013
- National Hurling League Division 1 (1): 2016
- National Hurling League Division 1B (1): 2012
- Munster Senior Hurling League (1): 2016
- Waterford Crystal Cup (1): 2013
- Wexford
- Walsh Cup (1): 2018
- Leinster Senior Hurling Championship (1): 2019
Awards and Achievements
- All-Stars (3): 1995, 2002, 2005
- RTÉ Sports Manager of the Year (1): 2013
Images for kids
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Davy Fitzgerald in his playing days.
