A familiar face beckons for Davy Fitzgerald

By Michael McMullan

IT will have been two weeks of deep reflection for Antrim ahead of Sunday’s visit of Waterford.

For Davy Fitzgerald, he’ll know exactly what’s stepping off the Deise bus in Corrigan Park.

The former Clare All-Ireland winner, who also steered his county to the Liam MacCarthy Cup as manager, stepped down as Waterford manager at the end of last season.

Time for some downtime? Yes, until he got a call from Antrim that pulled at him enough.

Now, he’s in the other dressing room on Sunday, needing to lift his new charges.

A defeat against Dublin wasn’t a huge shock. Maybe the margin, but the Saffrons were underdogs.

They were expected to beat Westmeath. That, they did. Then to Offaly. Where were Antrim?

It was the barometer and it tested Antrim’s ability to win on the road. Again, the margin of defeat will have stung.

While there will have been a pre-season of preparation, the days between Tullamore and Sunday will be about the top four inches. Where are Antrim now?

They’ve always been more than competitive at Corrigan Park but they need a response this weekend.

The dangerous caveat is – Waterford will need it too. After being chinned by Carlow, the Deise rattled up a 1-27 scoreline on Laois.

James McNaughton, Seaan Elliot and Keelan Molloy will hold the keys to troubling Waterford’s defence. Goalkeeper Ryan Elliott is at the other end of the equation.

It’s what happens in the middle that signposts where the points will rest on Sunday night.

Fitzgerald will know every inch of Waterford’s hurling ingredients. While he will be able to steer the Saffron ship, the players make all the moves.

They’ll need to hit the Corrigan turf with purpose. Turning their season depends on it.