Double injury blow for Rebel boss Counihan
O’Neill broke his thumb in training last Thursday night which resulted in Derek Kavanagh stepping into the breach for Saturday’s clash against Dublin, and the Aghada player now faces up to five weeks out of action which would see him miss Cork’s remaining two matches against Derry and Mayo.
O’Neill would also be absent for the Division 1 league final on April 25 should Cork qualify and will now target being fit for the Munster SFC semi-final clash against either Kerry or Tipp on June 6.
Murphy was forced off early in Saturday night’s game after aggravating a hamstring injury which has plagued him since the beginning of this year’s league campaign and now faces a spell on the treatment table as well.
Cork will continue to be without hamstring victims Graham Canty and Colm O’Neill for next Saturday night’s trip to Celtic Park, as well as the suspended Donncha O’Connor.
The match is expected to come too soon for both Anthony Lynch and Alan Quirke in their rehabilitation from injuries. Lynch did play a half in a game between a Cork reserve selection ant a second-string Dublin outfit in Clonakilty last Friday night, while Quirke trained with Cork last week. However, neither are yet back to full match fitness and the tie against Mayo on April 11 is a more realistic comeback date.
Defender Ger Spillane is another doubt for the Derry tie, but Aidan Walsh could be in contention after recovering from a hamstring injury to feature for his club Kanturk in U21 championship action on Sunday.
Meanwhile Ciaran Sheehan has termed his senior inter-county debut in last Saturday night’s clash with Dublin as ‘a massive pick me up’ after the disappointment of Cork’s Munster U21 championship exit the week before.
Cork were convincingly defeated by Kerry in the opening defence of their All-Ireland U21 crown but Sheehan revealed the involvement with the seniors helped him recover from that setback. An early hamstring injury to Nicholas Murphy paved the way for Sheehan’s introduction and he impressed with a two-point haul from full-forward.
“It was a massive pick me up after the way last week went with the U21’s. It was very disappointing to lose the way we did, we thought we’d a good chance going into it but never got going on the day. We’d such a great year last year but we’re gone now fairly early. It’s great after a defeat like that to be involved with another team, so I’m very happy to get a chance with the seniors.
“The league debut is always going to be a big thing for me with the seniors and I was delighted to get it there. I definitely didn’t expect to be coming into the match so early. When you’re on the bench you don’t think you’ll get involved for a while, but I was in after a few minutes.
“It was tough for Nicholas but I hope he’s okay now. I was happy with how the game went for me and hopefully I’ll get a chance to build on that now over the next few weeks, and that the team can keep going.”
Sheehan regarded the presence of his Éire Óg clubmate Daniel Goulding alongside him in the full-forward line as beneficial in helping him settle to the pace of the game.
“It might have been Cork senior but having Daniel alongside me helped. We’re fairly used to playing with each other at this stage with the club and all that.
“There’s a good understanding between us and it seemed to work well for a few moves inside. To get a couple of scores as well was a bonus. I’ve been on and off the panel for the last couple years, and wasn’t around for a while last summer when they were in the championship. Just to be there involved with them this year is great and getting a run against Dublin is hopefully a good sign going forward.”
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