Tipp blow as Maher breaks hand

ALL-IRELAND senior hurling champions Tipperary have been dealt a fresh injury blow with the news forward Patrick ‘Bonnar’ Maher has been ruled out for a month with a broken hand.

Maher, who scored four points against Galway in last Sunday’s thumping Allianz NHL victory, damaged his right hand in the closing stages and the severity of the injury was confirmed by scans yesterday.

Maher, 21, won All-Ireland senior and U21 medals in 2010 but will miss Tipperary’s final NHL outing of the group stages against Wexford at Semple Stadium on Sunday week, April 17.

The timing of Maher’s injury comes as more of a blow for the player’s club Lorrha-Dorrha and Maher will definitely miss the North SHC opener against Kildangan next Sunday.

The tigerish half-forward is unlikely to make it back in time for Lorrha-Dorrha’s second outing against Burgess on April 24.

But Maher is in no danger of missing Tipperary’s Munster SHC quarter-final against Cork at Semple Stadium on May 29.

Meanwhile, there were unconfirmed reports emanating from Tyrone last night that Philip Jordan has retired from inter-county football.

Jordan appeared as a second-half substitute in Tyrone’s Division 2 win over Kildare in Dungannon on Sunday after returning from a hip injury.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner last week, Jordan explained he had considered quitting last year because of several injuries in recent years.

* Mayo County Board held off on voting on the county’s development plan last night. Chairman of the draft strategic action plan Liam Horan, who had earlier said the board should ratify the full plan or none of it at all, did a questions and answers session with delegates. However, county chairman Paddy McNicholas gave the clubs a month to make submissions to the board’s plan.