Star duo face race against time
Connolly is the low-profile corner-forward on the Loughmore-Castleiney side attempting to create history in this, their first foray in the All-Ireland senior hurling club championship. Canning — still only 19 — is already one of hurling’s shining lights. A superstar in the making.
Three years ago Canning really grabbed the national spotlight. In 2005, still only 16, he won his second All-Ireland MHC medal with Galway; a few weeks later he starred with Portumna as they won their second Galway senior title in three years.
Joe wasn’t done, however. On March 17, 2006 he hit 1-5 of Portumna’s 2-8 in their All-Ireland win over Newtownshandrum.
Since then, the graph has continued to rise. Last year, in his first year in college he won a Fitzgibbon Cup with the Davy Fitzgerald-coached LIT and followed that up with an All-Ireland U21 medal with Galway.
Mature beyond his years both mentally and physically (a strapping 6’2” now), Joe turned down an offer to join the Galway seniors last year on the grounds that he wanted to relax for a while, before committing to the top grade, has also resisted so far this year.
“I’m concentrating on club and college. That’s in the future. If I get asked I’ll think about it then but as of now it’s just club and college.”
However; a hamstring tear in LIT’s final Fitzgibbon Cup qualifier game makes him a doubt for Sunday.
“It’s not something I want to think about too much. I’m trying to think positive thoughts, approach the match as I would approach any other game.
“I went down to Wexford on Friday and Saturday, got a few treatments there in cryotherapy. It’s a case of going into three cold chambers; the first one is -10 degrees, the second is -60 and the last one is -110, three minutes in the chamber. It’s good, wakes you up a small bit!
“I won’t really know the full effects until I actually test the leg. It was a pretty severe pull, I won’t know if I’m going to be able to play until Sunday.”
Without doubt Portumna would be seriously handicapped by the loss of such a major star, but those are the breaks. Loughmore-Castleiney too have their injury problems, a long-term injury to midfield star Martin Gleeson their biggest loss. Eddie Connolly too has his concerns, however; after training this week in Dr Morris Park in Thurles, it was straight into the ice-bath for Eddie; not cryotherapy perhaps but three dips in that freezing water is no picnic either.
“I have a small strain in the groin, it tightens up in training,” Eddie (a first cousin of rugby star Denis Leamy) explains; “The ice-bath will sort it. It makes a big difference. They are only a recent innovation for us. I find it very good. You’re a lot better the next day after training.
Where Portumna have been down this road before, that title from 2006 under their belts, this is a fairytale run for the surprise Tipp champions.
“It came out of the blue,” said the 22-year old. “We were on a low after losing the Mid-Tipp final but things have gradually built up and we don’t know where it might end. Everyone is dreaming of what could happen, but we can’t look past Sunday.
“Portumna are raging favourites and deserve to be because of what they’ve achieved over the last few years. They’ve got so many top-class players, but so have we.”
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