McGrath faces race against time

KEN McGRATH will miss the remainder of Waterford’s Allianz NHL campaign after sustaining a serious shoulder injury in their weekend defeat by Kilkenny.

The Allstar suffered a double fracture of his right collarbone and will undergo surgery at Waterford Regional hospital today.

McGrath will be sidelined for up to 12 weeks, leading to concerns about his availability for the Munster SHC semi-final with Cork on May 22.

“Losing last Sunday’s game was a disappointment in itself, but the result pales into insignificance alongside the injury to Ken,” said Waterford county secretary Seamas Grant yesterday.

“He is the team leader, the player everyone looks to for that spark of genius and inspiration.

“His loss for the remainder of the league campaign is incalculable, and we can only hope time will be on his side for the championship date with the All-Ireland champions in May.”

The injury was completely accidental however and resulted from a collision between the Mount Sion clubman and Kilkenny substitute Jimmy Coogan.

McGrath has been plagued by injuries throughout his career.

“This latest one is among the most serious however,” Grant said.

“The player himself is, understandably, devastated.”

Meanwhile, neither Kilkenny boss Brian Cody nor his Waterford counterpart, Justin McCarthy, is enthusiastic about the new experimental rules introduced for the league.

Cody is an unapologetic critic and is calling on Central Council to convene a special meeting to scrap them.

“I have no cribs with the referees, my crib is with these new rules, and the way things are going we will end up with 10-a-side games,” he said.

Cody was angered by the yellow card dismissals of defenders James Ryall and JJ Delaney last Sunday, adding he doesn’t know why either player was sent off.

Asked how he views the rules, Waterford manager Justin McCarthy pointedly responded: “Why are they trying to complicate a simple game?”

Meanwhile, former All-Ireland winning Clare selector Tony Considine has credited Cork manager John Allen with revitalising the career of Neil Ronan.

An All-Ireland SHC medallist in 1999, Ronan returned to the inter-county fold on Sunday, hitting seven points in the win over Limerick.

“His renaissance,” is how Allen described the performance. But Considine believes the manager should share some of the plaudits for returning Ronan to his usual full-forward berth.

“1999, despite the fact that he won an All-Ireland, probably ruined his confidence,” reckons Considine .

“In fact, I think it even affected him at U21 level. He was played out of position, put in the situation where he was looking over his shoulder in every game, wondering when he’d be taken off, and that continued for the next couple of years.

“John Allen will be very good for him, because he strikes me as a very good man-manager. He comes across very well, soft spoken, not aggressive in any way in what he says, but what he says is very solid.

“Neil Ronan spent the last year away in Australia, saw Brian Corcoran, who had never played full-forward for Cork, come out of retirement and win an All-Ireland medal. It must have killed him, he probably said to himself, that’s my position, that’s where I play. Now he’s taken it on, and he looked good last Sunday.”

Ronan wasn’t the only impressive “renaissance-man” as John Browne, Pat Mulcahy and Jonathon O’Callaghan all impressed.

Good news then for a relieved Allen in his first game as manager.

“There’s a certain amount of pressure, obviously, everybody remembers September last year, the fantastic performance we gave, so there was a certain amount of pressure that if things didn’t go well, I’d get a little bit of flak. But managers don’t win matches, teams win matches, and we have a professional outfit. Overall, I’m delighted.”

Seán Óg Ó hAilpín’s first competitive game as captain was marked by his usual dominant display.

“It’s a great honour, but you could get carried away about the extra burden. I’m just another one of 15 players out on the field, like Donal Óg (Cusack), like Diarmuid (O’Sullivan), I rely on them, on the other 14 players on the pitch.

“It’s a nice honour but when you step across the white line, captain or no captain, you’re just part of the team.”