‘Don’t let it happen’ – Ex-Tribe star warns Galway against appointing Davy Fitzgerald

Davy Fitzgerald’s Waterford departure has sparked all sorts of speculation linking him with the now-vacant Galway job – but one ex-Tribe star has claimed he would rather “eat cows***e” than work alongside the Clare man.

Fitzgerald brought an end to his two year stay with the Deise on Wednesday, citing family commitments as the motivation behind calling it a day in the south east.

However, later on Wednesday, it was confirmed that Henry Shefflin – who unexpectedly beat Fitzgerald to the Galway post back in 2021 – had left his role with the Tribesmen, sparking renewed talk of the former Clare boss slotting in with the county’s hurlers.

When the matter was put to former Galway goalkeeper James Skehill – and whether or not he would join a Davy Fitz backroom – he was at pains to stress that he didn’t want Fitzgerald to come in at all.

He told The Hurling Pod: ‘I’d rather ate cows***e [than join Fitzgerald in a Galway backroom team].

‘Sorry now, I can’t stress that enough. No, no, don’t let him near the place.

‘Straight up now, and I know this will go public – and I don’t care.

‘Either I sit by and let it happen, or I say something, so no. Don’t let it happen.. don’t let it happen. End of story.’

While Fitzgerald cited a desire to spend more time with his family in Clare as his main reason for quitting Waterford, he later admitted a return to inter-county management was not off the cards – with the slight chance of a reapparance in 2025 now surely heightened by Shefflin’s departure.

He said: ‘I won’t be leaving inter-county hurling, be it in a number of months, be it in a few years. Whatever it is I am sure I am going to be doing something at some stage.’