Galway mystery deepens as Cloonan remains in limbo

THE mystery over Eugene Cloonan’s absence from the Galway hurling squad deepened yesterday when he insisted he had no argument with the management.

And, after making a full recovery from injury, he does not expect to be recalled having missed out on so much training with the panel.

“It was a great performance from the team in beating Tipperary. I was delighted with the way Galway played,’’ he said yesterday.

“Playing Kilkenny is what people should be focusing on now, not speculating on whether or not I will be recalled,’’ he said.

The team management has refused to comment on Cloonan’s absence and Athenry club officials are also in the dark about his exclusion. With the player emphasising that he was ‘in no way bitter’, club sources dismissed rumours that he had ‘walked out’ on the team.

They also denied reports of a rift between the club and the County Board over expenses relating to Cloonan’s earlier involvement, saying: “This is not an issue. There is not a dispute between us.’’

Athenry also point out there is no link between Eugene’s exclusion and the absence of his younger brother Diarmuid from the squad.

The management made it known earlier in the year that they were keen for Diarmuid to play at full-back (where he played last year). However, he was tied up in the club championship with Athenry and was subsequently suspended for three months in that campaign. Following that, he is said to have lost interest in hurling temporarily and he indicated to manager Hayes that he wasn’t fit enough to resume his place. In the meantime, Eugene is confining his activity to Athenry’s junior ‘A’ footballers.