Davy not looking past Croker date with Tipp

DAVY Fitzgerald was in Croke Park last Sunday to see title holders Kilkenny dispose of Cork in the first of this year’s All-Ireland senior hurling semi-finals. However, the Waterford manager insists that neither he nor the Waterford squad are even thinking about the Noresiders this week.

“We haven’t talked about Kilkenny once. They are not in front of us. We are just concentrating on Tipperary,” he told The Clare Champion.
He admitted to being impressed by Kilkenny last week.
“They looked very good but Cork had gone back from the Munster final and were not as good on Sunday. Yes, Kilkenny were awsome but it doesn’t interest me at this stage. All we are interested in is Tipperary,” he said.
The Sixmilebridge man is looking forward to Sunday’s games at Croke Park. “My feelings don’t change for Clare.  They are very strong and I am very excited by the fact that they are in the minor semi-final on Sunday. It’s a bonus for me that they are on the same bill as us. I wish them the best of luck and that comes from the heart,” he said.
He was impressed with the minors in the Munster final. “Their display on that occasion was very good and I think that they will grow from that. They are capable of improving and they will have to if they are to progress,” he said adding, “We plan to get there in good time and I hope to see a good deal of the action”.
Turning to the eagerly awaited meeting of Waterford and Tipperary, Fitzgerald said Waterford have a clean bill of health and are looking forward to the challenge. “We have worked hard. We have four or five principles which we stick to. We have aspects of our game that we have concentrated on and we have improved a lot in these areas.”
Fitzgerald was impressed with Tipperary’s win over Galway in their quarter-final was noteworthy. “They were four or five points the better side on the day. They have improved a lot and are a formidable outfit. We are underdogs even though we haven’t lost a championship game this year but we don’t care about that.”
Fitzgerald has a strong squad as his disposal in Waterford this year. They have shown a lot of composure and maturity on their way to this stage of the championship and while pundits favour Tipperary to win this one, a Waterford victory will not be a huge surprise.