Hurling ambassador role for Fitzgerald

DAVY Fitzgerald, the manager of the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) senior hurling team, has been named as the first ambassador of hurling for LIT as part of the college’s promotion efforts.
President of LIT, Dr Maria Hinfelaar made the announcement recently as a collection of hurling trophies were on display at the college. LIT has a unique link to the premier hurling competitions in 2010 and 2011, as a number of members of the winning teams attend the college.
Inter-county players Eoin Kelly, Dennis Maher (Tipperary), Joe Canning (Galway), Gavin O’Mahony, Paul Browne (Limerick), Conor Cooney, Ronan Taaffe (Clare) and Jackie Tyrrell (Kilkenny) were all in attendance as the All-Ireland senior, All-Ireland and Munster U-21, Munster minor and 2011 league Division 2 trophies were displayed.
LIT captured the Fitzgibbon Cup in their first appearance in the final in 2005. They were again successful in 2007 and were beaten finalists in 2009 and 2011. Among the other inter-county players who have represented the college are Shane McGrath and Conor O’Mahony (Tipperary); Kieran Murphy (Cork); Jonathan Clancy and Nicky O’Connell (Clare); Maurice O’Brien (Dublin)and Sean Tobin (Limerick).
During the course of her welcome, Dr Hinfelaar made an announcement of the development for LIT hurling, with the news that Fitzgerald has agreed to take on the role of ambassador of hurling for LIT as part of its overall promotion efforts.
“In 2005, following our first Fitzgibbon success, LIT played a pivotal role in the development of a new GAA club on the north side of Limerick city. LIT Sarsfields is making great strides in the communities of Moyross and Ballynanty and as part of that relationship, they have access to the facilities of LIT.
“We feel that as a third-level institute, we have a special responsibility to provide for the total development of our students. While we have gained a valued reputation on the hurling field, we feel that it is time to deepen our hurling links with schools and clubs within our wider community. In that regard, we are delighted that Davy has agreed to act as a hurling ambassador for LIT and in that role, he will be actively engaged in the promotion of hurling and LIT.”
In addition LIT, with the support of the LIT GAA club and AIB, will be launching a range of GAA bursaries for 2011/12. This will ensure that funding will be available to support the academic development of first-year students in LIT, at a time when the cost of attending college is potentially becoming a barrier for many students.