Willie’s back with a bang!
New boss revived career
WILLIE DEVEREUX has revealed how Davy Fitzgerald has helped him to resurrect his inter-county career, having opted out of the squad last year.
The St. Martin’s man has worked his way back through the system to regain his place in defence after losing out on twelve months of inter-county hurling, taking full advantage of that call from the new manager.
Willie is carrying two stitches on the bridge of his nose which he attributes to his clubmate Aaron Maddock, but he laughed off the idea that it will have any bearing on his future looks.
It was a combination of heavy work commitments and lack of opportunities that influenced his decision to opt out of the 2016 campaign.
‘I was not getting much game time having put in the heavy training. Also my work load was heavy enough which also influenced my decision.
‘I decided to go back to the club, hoping to regain some form, and take it on from there. I work in the family business, just three miles away from home, so it left me with more time to concentrate on my work commitments,’ he said.
‘I did different things during those twelve months. I did not just sit around while I also gave more time to my club which was of huge benefit to me in re-gathering my focus and appetite for the game. Naturally when the big games were on it left me thinking.
‘I often wondered and thought I should be there, but in that year out I was happy in what I was doing. I’ve worked with this group of lads since I was 15 to 16 years of age, so it’s nice to be back in among them.’
Willie admitted that it was an easy decision to return once he received that call from Davy. ‘I possibly missed the opening few sessions but when I received that call there was never any doubts. I came back on the scene, worked hard in training, and took it on from there.
‘When I came back in I quickly found out what he wanted us to do. He wanted to get us into winning ways, build our confidence. It may have taken a short while to believe in this, but as time moved on we began to believe. We took the league first; promotion was our aim, which we achieved, but now we are determined to move on, build on that.
‘We are a happy camp. Everyone is happy in the camp, of that there’s no doubt. We have made progress, got promoted and now are in a Leinster final.
‘We are happy with the way things are going, everything is going well, the training is going well, it’s enjoyable, and everyone is enjoying everyone’s company. There is a great buzz in the camp.’
Devereux is delighted to be involved once again and can see the joy which the team is bringing to the county.
‘It’s great to see people, parents and family members being so delighted with what is happening. It’s nice to be part of it. We could have done with a few more days in the past like we had against Kilkenny, but it’s all moving us on, moving us on to another big day.
‘Right now the last day will count for nothing unless we can deliver a big game on Leinster final day. That is what we are now concentrating on.’
There has been a lot of talk about Davy’s approach to training and everything involved with it, like looking for the missing hurling balls.
‘Look, Davy has been a massive success since he came here. He’s extremely professional in everything he does. We are a happy bunch, happy under him, enjoying his coaching along with the help received from the rest of the lads in the backroom. It has been a massive effort by everyone.
‘When hurling balls were missing on the final count the culprits had to seek them out on the ground, while also taking in extra press-ups for not collecting them. I think by this stage we all know the real culprits.
‘It’s like everything. We respect our training gear, respect the collecting of the hurling balls, we clean up the dressing rooms once training is finished, we clean off our own plates. It’s a real emphasis on good manners, it’s a general respect for everyone. Seamus, our caretaker, is here every evening and has everything ready. We respect all of that and I think they respect us.’
Looking back on the Kilkenny game, Willie added: ‘I don’t think we were favourites going into that game. We knew what was coming so we prepared for that, we had our own plan, Davy had his plan and we stuck to that.
‘Things happen in a game,’ he said. referring back to the Kilkenny goal from a penalty in the opening minute. ‘But we stuck to our gameplan as we had 69 minutes to get back into the game. There was no panic.’
Devereux knows quite a deal about Galway. ‘We met them in the league but this is championship, a Leinster final, it will be so different. They did not have Joe Canning that day, he came on as a sub. He will be there this time, but we’ll will be ready for them.
‘They are what they are. We know they are a really fine side, a fine group of hurlers. They will have the experience of having played in front of large crowds in Croke Park.
‘For us it will be a first time playing in front of such a crowd, so it will be an experience. But Davy will have us prepared, have his plan in place, whatever it may be. Their experience may be a help to them but also it’s nice going in fresh.’
There’s no doubt that Davy has the camp buzzing with each player knowing what their individual responsibilities really are.
‘I’ve been through different times but feel Davy is just honest, tells you what he wants you to do, and it’s very simple after that. It’s just his honesty that helps me. He lays out your job, your role, so you just have to get on with it.
‘There have been a few long evenings, but it’s going well at the minute. It’s still mid-June, now we want to keep progressing, keep going.
‘I don’t think we have surprised ourselves. We go into games to win them, our ambition was to get promotion, but that’s not our only ambition, we have ambitions other than that.
‘We are in a Leinster final. This is a seriously talented side, so that’s our next hurdle. We are looking no further.’