“I’ve been privileged and honoured to lead this squad”
Pat Sullivan has stepped down as Waterford Ladies Football manager. Photo: INPHO.
Waterford ladies football are on the lookout for a new senior manager as Pat Sullivan has decided not to reapply for the role in 2025.
The Dungarvan man held the position for the past three years. He led the Déise to the All-Ireland quarter finals last month after a six point victory over Donegal in Walsh Park. They exited the championship to Cork at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Earlier in the season, Waterford retained their Division 1 status with wins against Galway and Cork.
This was Sullivan’s second spell in charge. He previously guided Waterford to the All-Ireland intermediate title in 2015 as well as Division 3 glory a year later. “I walk away with no regrets. I’ve been privileged and honoured in the last three years to lead this squad and in the previous term for four years. I came into the job back in October 2014 and my strategy always was to leave the team in a better place than I found them. They were in a quarter final in the intermediate back then and in Division 3. I walk away with Division 1 and an All-Ireland quarter final and I believe the team aren’t far off moving to the next level. I’ve been blessed with the bunch of players I’ve had. I feel I have left them in a really good place.”
Sullivan thanked his backroom team of secretary Lisa Cronin, performance coach Eimear McCarthy, physio Eimear O’Connor, strength and conditioning coach Ciaran Burke, nutritionist Paul Cox, coaches Kealan O’Neill, Kevin Doogue, Megan Dunford and Noel O’Connor, analysts Richard Bowles and Rory Hurley and team mentor Joe Cleary. He hopes that the players will continue to enjoy a professional set-up next year. “If you do not have a high performance team, you’re in trouble. Within a year, you could end up down in intermediate or back in Division 2 or 3. Over the years, I’ve been very lucky to have a sponsor in Michael Ryan who gave a lot to Waterford ladies football. Losing Michael last year was a big loss from a funding point of view. They will need to make sure to have a replacement for Michael and a strong fundraising team behind them.”
The Waterford LGFA Executive released a statement on Friday, August 16 via Facebook. “Waterford Ladies Football is pleased to announce the conclusion of our intercounty season following the recent County Board meeting. This year has been marked by outstanding success across all our teams, and we congratulate everyone involved. As the intercounty season draws to a close, we acknowledge that this also signifies the end of the current management terms for our Senior, Minor and U14 teams. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Pat Sullivan, Pat O’Brien and Mark Power, along with their dedicated management teams, for their exceptional contributions and leadership throughout the season. Looking ahead, we are now initiating the selection process for new management positions for these teams. We welcome expressions of interest for the roles of Senior, Minor and U14 managers and encourage interested candidates to reach out in the coming weeks. Thank you for your continued support and dedication to Waterford Ladies Football.”
