Carey not interested in return to hurling at high level

DJ CAREY insists he has no designs on making his return to hurling any more serious than lining out for Young Irelands’ junior A team. The 40-year-old returned to action for the first time for the Gowran club in a challenge game against Carrickshock last Tuesday after he had trained with the team the previous week.

However, eight-time All-Star Carey maintains he doesn’t intend on playing at senior or intermediate level for the club.

“I won’t be coming back to the game at any level higher than this, that’s for certain,” Carey assured. “I’m just glad I’ve come out of the game during the week unscathed. Of course, it’s not as serious as the level I had been playing previously but at my age once you come out of it intact you’re not complaining.”

Carey admits he had no great desire to make a return to hurling.

“It’s not a comeback,” he smiled. As he explains, all he wanted to do was help out the team. “I wasn’t missing it that much but I had been down to watch the team play and then decided to do a bit of training with them. We were missing my brother Martin who is on holidays at the moment so they were stuck for a goalkeeper. So I togged out for them and after awhile went outfield.”

Carey could line out alongside his former Kilkenny team-mate Charlie Carter against Tullaroan in the north junior A championship tomorrow afternoon but is not yet certain if he will be fit enough.

“The legs have to recover first from the game during the week,” he laughed. “I’ve been out of the game so long, it’s four years since I lifted a hurl in any anger. Even 20 minutes of running takes a lot out of me. I was down in a field close to where I live the other night trying to ease the pain out of my legs.

“But I have no real ambitions about hurling again. I might play a game or two if the club wants me. I don’t want to be taking the place of a young lad.”