Éamonn Fitzmaurice

Éamonn Fitzmaurice
Personal information
Sport Gaelic football
Position Center Half Back
Born Lixnaw, County Kerry
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Occupation Secondary school teacher
Club(s)
Years Club
1990s-present

Finuge

Lixnaw
Club titles
Kerry titles 1
Inter-county(ies)
Years County Apps (scores)
1998-2006 Kerry 50(0-07)
Inter-county titles
Munster titles 6
All-Irelands 3
NFL 2

Éamonn Fitzmaurice is a former inter-county Gaelic footballer for Kerry, the first Lixnaw man (a predominantly hurling area) to play senior championship for the county. He currently manages the Kerry senior team.[1] A secondary school teacher in Dingle, he is married to Tina. His great-grandfather Maurice Fitzmaurice was part of the Kerry hurling team that won the 1891 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship.

At club level, Fitzmaurice won the 2005 All-Ireland Junior Club Football Championship with Finuge[2] and the 2007 Kerry Senior Football Championship with Feale Rangers. He captained Feale Rangers to the championship and was lauded for his leadership in the aftermath of that victory.[3] He was awarded the man of the match award for his display against four in a row chasing South Kerry. Fitzmaurice has the unique achievement of winning a Cork County Championship and Munster Club Championship with UCC in 1999. He has played in 11 County championship finals between football and hurling and Kerry and Cork. He won County Senior Hurling Championships with Lixnaw in 1999, 2005 and 2007.

Fitzmaurice played 50 championship games for Kerry and won the 2000, 2004 and 2006 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, having made his championship debut against Cork in 1998. The majority of his Kerry games were at centre half back where he played every game from 2000 to 2005 at number 6. He won a minor and 2 Under 21 All-Ireland medals and 6 Munster Championship medals. He retired from inter-county football early in 2007 at the young age of 29.

On retiring he wrote columns for the Irish Examiner. He was named as a selector by incoming manager Jack O'Connor after the 2008 season.[4] Kerry won the All-Ireland in 2009 under the management of O'Connor, with Fitzmaurice as a selector. O'Connor went on record as saying that Fitzmaurice would be a future Kerry manager. He left after Kerry were surprisingly beaten by Down in the 2010 All-Ireland quarter-final. He became the new Kerry U-21 manager in May 2011. He succeeded Jack O'Connor as manager of the Kerry senior team on a three-year contract in August 2012.[5][6][7] He guided Kerry to a Munster title and an All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Dublin.

On 21 September 2014, Fitzmaurice managed Kerry to win their 37th All-Ireland title after a 2-9 to 0-12 win against Donegal.[8][9] On 20 September 2015, Kerry lost the 2015 All-Ireland Football Final to Dublin on a 0-12 to 0-9 scoreline. The day after the loss it was confirmed that Fitzmaurice would remain in charge for 2016.[10][11]

References

  1. ↑ "Eamonn Fitz the bill for O'Connor". Irish Independent. 26 November 2012.
  2. ↑ http://archives.tcm.ie/thekingdom/2005/03/31/story16734.asp
  3. ↑ "It's Captain Galvin for Kerry as Feale land title". Irish Independent. 25 November 2012.
  4. ↑ http://www.examiner.ie/irishexaminer/pages/story.aspx-qqqg=sport-qqqm=sport-qqqa=sport-qqqid=76990-qqqx=1.asp
  5. ↑ "Fitzmaurice takes Kerry Senior Football role". Irish Examiner. 27 August 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
  6. ↑ "Newly appointed Kerry senior football manager Eamonn Fitzmaurice understands scale of new role". RTÉ Sport. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
  7. ↑ "Eamon Fitzmaurice is named as new Kerry football manager". BBC Sport. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
  8. ↑ "Eamonn Fitzmaurice hails 'exciting time' ahead for champions with Tommy Walsh to return from Oz". Irish Independent. 23 September 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  9. ↑ "Quiet man with common touch draws strength from adversity". Irish Independent. 23 September 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  10. ↑ "Eamonn Fitzmaurice WILL be in charge of Kerry in 2016". Irish Independent. 21 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  11. ↑ "Eamonn Fitzmaurice to stay on as Kerry manager for 2016". Irish Examiner. 21 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
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