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"I call myself a hypocritical Catholic!" - Waterford boss Derek McGrath tells us his pre-match rituals

Rituals or superstitions are very much part of sporting preparation. And Derek McGrath is no diff...



"I call myself a hypocriti...
Football

"I call myself a hypocritical Catholic!" - Waterford boss Derek McGrath tells us his pre-match rituals

Rituals or superstitions are very much part of sporting preparation.

And Derek McGrath is no different as he revealed to Off The Ball.

Chatting to Joe Molloy ahead of the drawn All-Ireland hurling semi-final against Kilkenny, the Waterford manager shared some of the things he does. 

"I wouldn't put myself in the same bracket as people who are really devout. I would, every Saturday before every game, go to De La Salle College, go into the prayer room, go through the whole St Joseph's booklet beforehand, praying for luck, praying for everything," he told Joe.

"I call myself a hypocritical Catholic! I promise God, I promise St Joseph, that I'll be a good person, and I'll go back to Mass every Sunday and bring my 10-year old and 3-year old... [and ask] if [St Joseph] can just make us be our best we can possibly be during the games.

"On Sunday I go to the Cathedral, I go to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and I just say, 'Make us be the best we can be'.

"And if you want to see how stupidly superstitious I am, when I'm lighting the candles, I light them in the same [team] formation for the day! And I actually say, 'This could win us the day.'

"From the sublime to the ridiculous!"

So if an opposition manager followed him into the Cathedral, his tactical plan would be revealed in candle form.

Listen to the full interview on the podcast player:

 

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