SET TO BE named Wexford’s new football manager, Paul Galvin says that he doesn’t see himself as a “conventional” GAA boss.
The Wexford county board confirmed on Friday that the former Kerry star is set to take charge, pending ratification at a meeting in early September.
It would come as the four-time All-Ireland winner and three-time All Star’s first role in senior management should the vote pass.
Galvin, who retired in 2016, noted that the club culture in Wexford — and also the people involved — was a key factor in his decision to go for the job. Writing in his Sunday Times column today, he noted:
“While I don’t see myself as a GAA manager in the conventional sense, taking on the Wexford senior job is something I’m comfortable with because of the calibre of people I have experienced at board level.
The club culture in Wexford is something that makes sense to me and if there was one overall deciding factor in my getting involved this would be it. Where it will lead nobody knows, but I have clarity on what I want to do.
Galvin also wrote about how he attended Wexford’s All-Ireland SHC semi-final loss to Tipperary in Croke Park last Sunday “to get a feel for the Wexford supporters”.
Paul Galvin @pgal10 explains in @SunTimesIreland why he is taking @OfficialWexGAA footballers pic.twitter.com/jf2sM6ZNuH
— Ronan Fagan (@RonanFagan1) August 4, 2019
He likened the scene to his native Kingdom.
“There was a strong identity on the field,” Galvin added. “The real standout was their almost Gaelic football-like use of possession. Wexford hardly wasted a ball.
“I have been surrounded by managers and management types all my life, from people like Eamonn Fitzmaurice, his father Eamonn Sr, and Jimmy Deenihan at home to Jack O’Connor with Kerry and Eamonn Cregan, Tom Ryan, Mark Foley and Ciaran Carey, who I played under for Lixnaw. I won’t be short of mentors.
“A county where one sport takes prominence over the other is something I understand coming from a hurling area of Kerry myself. Wexford hurling is on a high right now.
“The work of Davy Fitzgerald and his team is the greatest reference for preparation and performance that any of the footballers could wish to have.”
The42 is on Instagram! Tap the button below on your phone to follow us!
