Éamonn Fitzmaurice resigned as Kerry football manager yesterday following their Championship exit at the All-Ireland quarter-final stage. However, it is the manner of it that has angered former Kerry star Colm Cooper.
As he announced his resignation, Fitzmaurice referenced the negativity surrounding the team and revealed he had "a box full of anonymous letters.” While the 41-year-old accepted criticism is part of the job, he was frustrated by the 'over-the-top criticism.'
Speaking on RTE's Sunday Game, Cooper slammed the treatment of his former team-mate and manager.
Maybe he wasn't universally approved by everyone but there were some scurrilous remarks that nobody deserves. Receiving hate mail? That's not part of the GAA. That's not in the GAA scheme of things. That's not right. You can agree or disagree with his training methods or his team selections but that's going too far. Nobody deserves that. He's given six years to Kerry, he was an outstanding servant as a player, and that's the disappointing thing for me.
It's not the fact that Kerry went out on Saturday night, because they just weren't good enough to qualify; it's that twist and how he left. It didn't go down well.
Eamonn Fitzmaurice didn't deserve the abuse he got from supporters, says Colm Cooper https://t.co/qNlVRDvzXL #RTEgaa pic.twitter.com/uHiR7xS7B4
— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) August 5, 2018
Within the county, attention now turns to Fitzmaurice's successor with Peter Keane, Pat O'Shea, Liam Kearns and Jack O'Connor all likely to be amongst the running.
