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The former Hurler of the Year had a fraught relationship with the Waterford manager INPHO/James Crombie
Deise

Shanahan: Davy loves the attention

Dan the Man agrees Fitzgerald enjoys ‘Mourinho’ tactics with media.

FORMER WATERFORD STAR Dan Shanahan has had another pop at Waterford manager Davy Fitzgerald this afternoon.

Speaking in an interview with Matt Cooper which will be broadcast on Today FM’s Last Word programme after 6pm this evening, Shanahan revelaed the fraught relationship with the Clare man.

“He came in and took us over and brought in this and that,” said Shanahan, “he improved facilities and training gear for us. But you could tell after three or four sessions he was coming with a different gameplan for matches. And it wasn’t suiting my play – but not only my play – our play.

“But he was the manager at the time and we all had to stick by his decisions. But it was tough going from playing normal hurling to playing negative hurling.

“I think Waterford are a good brand of hurlers. [But] things really changed when Davy came in there.”

When Cooper queried what the Waterford players made of Fitzgerald’s perceived hunger for the spotlight – ‘like Jose Mourinho’ – he admitted the camp was split on the topic.

“A lot of players had different opinions about that. He was involved in media a lot himself yet he might not leave one or two players do interviews themselves because of disagreements in the past. I didn’t agree with that, but he draws the media on himself. He loves the attention, big time.”

And Shanahan insists that he did not mean to snub then-boss Justin McCarthy when substituted in Limerick in 2008 as Clare ran riot in the Munster hurling championship clash.

“I was taken off that day. I had a bad day at the office,” Shanahan told Cooper, ” We didn’t shake hands – and one of the big regrets I had was not shaking the man’s hand. But I didn’t think I deserved to shake his hand. I should have gotten a kick up the backside.”