Yes, Davy Fitzgerald gets a little worked up sometimes.
Yes, he has falling outs with referees.
And he has falling outs with referees.
And referees.
And referees.
There have been enough flashpoints now or minor incidents to create an easy narrative.
‘Oh, Davy isn’t happy’, ‘Look at Davy, he’s shouting,’ ‘The poor players are going to know all about it in the changing room’ – that type of thing.
But what the Clare man isn’t credited enough for is that the anger or frustration that sometimes boils over is borne out of pure passion and love for the game. Even, now, away from his native county, the Wexford manager feels that desire to win.
We’ve all been guilty of thinking he needs to calm down. We say that his restless manner on the sideline could not be helpful for players on the field. Or that his micro-management of every small piece of play is too much.
Some people see it differently. After their first encounter back in November, Lee Chin was already sold on Davy Fitzgerald.
“The man himself, he’s achieved a lot throughout his own career and even in the last few years in his management roles with Waterford and Clare.
“It’s very exciting, very exciting times,” Chin told SportsJOE at the time.
“We met with him last week, had a meeting and the man’s passion and enthusiasm… I’ve never experienced that before. I’m really, really looking forward to working with him.”
The people of Wexford were more intrigued than anything when Fitzgerald came on board. Excited, sure, but also just interested to see how it would turn out after his time at Clare progressively got staler come championship in 2016.
After two games and two superb victories over Limerick and Galway, the Model County Gaels are quickly buying into the idea of Davy Fitzgerald and you can already see that the players have too.
At the full time whistle in Salthill on Sunday, after the Wexford men had battled the Atlantic elements and a fierce Tribesman outfit for 70 minutes to finally – finally – come from behind and edge in front, Wexford players and supporters erupted.
Conor McDonald, who was so instrumental in that comeback with his seven points, ran straight over to find his manager and embrace him.
It wasn’t a performance of a group of players that aren’t listening to and believing in the words of the manager.
They’re not scenes of an army-drilled camp, just doing what they’re told because they want to play for their county.
It was a performance and they were scenes of talented men who believe in the direction they are going and who trust the man taking them there.
When Fitzgerald spoke afterwards, Wexford natives of all ages came to a standstill to listen to him.
An elder gentleman hanging off his every word, young kids thrilled with the excitement of it all, and the new manager vowing:
“Give us a year or a year and a bit and we’ll be hard to beat.”
Passion and fire, when channeled correctly, can be a force of nature. Right now, untainted, that’s what Davy is bringing to Wexford.
