EirGrid, the official timing partner to the GAA, will celebrate the fifth year of its partnership over the coming shortened 2020 Championship season by focusing on the role of the Manager and continuing its ongoing Manager of the Month awards.

Davy Fitzgerald met with media yesterday to help in the promotion of the announcement and even over the more sterile environment of a Microsoft Teams gathering, he was full value as is evidenced by the coverage across all media this morning.

There was the impish smile as he confirmed he had left his wedding last year to run a session with back to back Clare County Champions Sixmilebridge, albeit only the days before and after and not the actual wedding day itself.  Sure that would be mad.

He has been looking after himself through walking, a little bit on the bike and watching the calories as he handles the pressures of management and Covid-19 with five heart stents.

Club

He’d love to see the AIB Club Championships run out as well as the Electric Ireland Fitzgibbon Cup with which he has enjoyed a 28-year relationship.

He is also intent on being ready for the Championship and the resumption of inter-county activity with Wexford facing Galway under lights in the first round of the Leinster Championship.

He’s not a great fan of floodlit hurling but mindful of the challenges we have to face this year, and perhaps the fact that yesterday’s sponsor is in the energy business, he wasn’t making a big thing of it.

Back to the sponsorship anyway and each month during the 2020 All-Ireland Championships, a managerial moment that changed the course of a match will be singled out with the manager being named EirGrid Manager of the Month and awarded a premium sports watch.

Last year’s monthly winners included Laois manager, Eddie Brennan, Tipperary boss Liam Sheedy and former Dublin manager Jim Gavin who was also named EirGrid Manager of the Year.

Communities

“At EirGrid, we put communities and community groups at the heart of what we do and our partnerships with the GAA provide us with many ways to support these communities,” said Michael Mahon, Chief Infrastructure Officer at Eirgrid.

“We are very proud to be in our fifth year as the Official Timing Partner to the GAA and to be extending the tradition begun last year of recognising and celebrating the important role of the manager in the All-Ireland championship.

“Managers are the backbone of all teams; their in-depth level of expertise provides the influence to shape the game,” added GAA President John Horan.

“EirGrid have used its platform as Official Timing Partner of the GAA to recognise and celebrate the special moments on the pitch that are shaped by managers who work tirelessly on the side-line. Given the uncertainty of recent times, managers have had to adapt by reshaping their training methods whilst still aiming to produce key results on the pitch.

“We look forward to seeing which managerial moments will light up this year’s All-Ireland Championship.”