O’Sullivan happy he committed to hurling

DIARMUID O’SULLIVAN was forced to take serious decisions to secure his position as one of hurling’s most formidable defenders.

Early in the season he had to opt out of inter-county football and then commit to a rigorous training regime to improve his fitness. The Cloyne and Cork star has no doubt it was the correct decision. However, he admits he was probably wrong to play in the Munster final, having been ill the previous week.

Last year, he realised his ambition of playing in a Munster football final except that it wasn't against Kerry in Killarney as he hoped when he committed himself to Larry Tompkins' squad. He did get to play against them, in the drawn semi-final, but won his medal as a substitute in the replay against Tipperary in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. In Cork's two games in the All-Ireland series, against Mayo and Kerry, he was also limited to a substitute's role.