McGrath may commit for 2011

WATERFORD legend Ken McGrath could be set to commit to another season of inter-county hurling next month.

The three time All Star has been troubled by knee injuries in recent seasons and was forced to start all of the county’s championship ties this year from the bench.

However he revealed that those cartilage problems have improved considerably since last year and that he is on an individual training programme along with a number of senior players on Davy Fitzgerald’s squad.

The Mount Sion man will make a decision on his future next month.

He said: “Davy phoned me enquiring about my intentions for next year, and I appreciated that.

“I told Davy I wouldn’t make a decision until after Christmas. But at least it’s encouraging that my legs feel much better now than they did at the same time last year.

“At the moment, like some of the other long-serving lads, I’m on an individual training programme which has been devised by Ger Hartman, and I’m doing a bit of work in the gym. However, I’ve been a bit restricted in my training due to extra work I’ve had to do in the shop during the bad weather.

“Hopefully I’ll be in a position in early January to make a decision about whether I’ll be playing next year.

“This year, I didn’t get back training until April, and I would like it to be a bit earlier next year if I do get back. But at the same time, I can’t afford to go back training too early in the year, or train too hard, as then I’d have nothing left for the summer.”

Another plus for McGrath is that his knees problems didn’t flare up badly during the latter stages of this year’s championship campaign.

“I generally have more problems with my knees on hard grounds during the summer, but this year they felt quite good from after the Munster final replay and that was very encouraging.”