Terence 'Sambo' McNaughton has one concern for Davy Fitzgerald
Saffron legend Terence 'Sambo' McNaughton reckons Davy Fitzgerald will bring the buzz as he starts to get up and running in Antrim, but there is one potential obstacle that is worrying him.
Terence ‘Sambo’ McNaughton says he’d love to hurl under Davy Fitzgerald - and he hopes every hurler in Antrim feels the same way.
The Cushendall man has concerns that this may not be the case when players see the level of commitment expected of them - but he is hopeful the best hurlers will buy into the county cause.
Fitzgerald shocked the hurling world when he agreed to take over from Darren Gleeson as Antrim manager, after finishing out two years in Waterford, and his arrival has created a huge buzz in the Saffron County.
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“I'm looking forward to seeing what Davy can do,” said Antrim legend McNaughton.
“If I was a player, I'd love to hurl under Davy, just to see what the craic was for a year and see what all the hype is about.
Just to see him in the changing room. You'd love to get involved under him and see what it's like.
“I think Davy is on holiday in America so he didn't get to see the (Antrim) semi-finals but Davy is going to come with a buzz. Davy brings what Davy brings. He's going to ask for a higher level of commitment from the guys than ever before.
“My worry about that is - and this is only personal and I hope it doesn't happen but there's no sponsored cars in the car park.
“There's no holidays at the end of the year. There's no All-Ireland final to aim for. If you're in Waterford, you've a higher profile.
“I hope the lads don't walk away from a higher level. We didn't lose a Leinster title last year because of a bad manager.
Darren (Gleeson) got the best out of what's there.”
McNaughton continued: “If you're asking lads to give the level of commitment that Davy obviously is going to demand - he's going to have to demand that to compete - I hope there's not a drop off.
“That's my fear. I'd have that inner fear and worry about it that players would look and say, 'what am I doing this for? I'm sacrificing my whole life here.'
“We're not going to win the All-Ireland. There's nobody in Antrim booking hotels for the All-Ireland final next year because Davy is coming but we want to get the best out of them.
“Our aim will be to get at Wexford or Dublin, those teams that we would see just above us. To take the scalps of them on a regular basis and that's what we need to do, and not just at home.”
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