Birr hoping fit Whelahan can master Students

BIRR manager John Goode will be praying that Brian Whelahan has not aggravated a groin strain after taking part in a charity walk with other GAA legends Eoin Liston, Jack O’Shea and Henry Shefflin in Malawi.

The 34-year old is due back from the south-east African country today but the Offaly champions are confident that their talisman will be fit to line out against UCD in Sunday’s Leinster club championship match at Parnell Park.

Whelahan is one of 10 Offaly senior panellists that the four-time All-Ireland champions can call on for what is a star-studded fixture against the Dublin champions.

College will again line out with players from most of the major hurling counties, with Kilkenny, Tipperary, Cork, Limerick, Wexford and Offaly all represented.

They will, however, be without corner forward Andrew Smith who will be representing his home club Portumna in the Galway final while Offaly’s Brendan Murphy is still a doubt after picking up an injury while on duty with Leinster in the Interprovincial final in Boston last weekend.

The good news is that Limerick’s Stephen Lucey is expected to be fit in time while Kilkenny’s Brian Barry also returns to the side after missing the facile win against Meath’s Killyon in the last round.

Whatever the personnel, the game is undoubtedly the most eagerly anticipated of the weekend’s club fixtures.

Birr’s best days seemed behind them last year when Coolderry ended their five-year reign as county champions but the introduction of Goode at the helm has rejuvenated the side, as evidenced by their destruction of last year’s champions in the Offaly decider last month.

However, it’s for different reasons entirely that UCD manager Babs Keating is playing down his side’s chances of reaching the provincial decider at the weekend.

“I’m just a bit worried that we have had a lot of interruptions,” said the new Tipperary boss. “The recent trips abroad by other teams to places like America and Australia have affected us and we’ve had a few injuries as well. We have four or five players who are finished in the college since last May.

“That’s another disadvantage because they’re not training with us anymore on a regular basis. I don’t see the situation at the moment as being as positive as it was 12 months ago but I’m hoping it will come together next Sunday against Birr.

“Birr have eight or nine of the Offaly panel. This is inter-county level we’re talking about. It’s certainly as good as Division Two league level at inter-county. That’s the standard we’re hoping to match Sunday. If UCD succeed Sunday that will mean that (Offaly boss) John McIntyre will have a terrible problem on his hands.”

Last year, UCD lost the Leinster final to James Stephens by the narrowest of margins in a game where two points awarded to the Kilkenny champions were hotly disputed as wides by Keating and UCD.

“I think the lads would be delighted to get the opportunity of getting to a Leinster final and getting the opportunity of undoing what happened against James Stephens last year.”

With The Village expected to emerge from the other side of the draw at the expense of Carlow’s Naomh Eoin and Laois’ Castletown, motivation should not be a problem for the Students on Sunday.