I thought my year was finished, admits Power

Suspension, injury, loss of form. In time there might be an accepted acronym for that deadly trio. For now, it’s safe to say Richie Power believes bad things come in threes.

The red card he picked up for a tackle on Eoin Cadogan in March’s Division 1A game in Cork was cruel but then came the knee injury in a club league game against James Stephens at the end of April.

Initially, the Carrickshock man thought the worst. Cruciate. Season gone. The drive down the M9 to surgeon Tadhg O’Sullivan in Waterford that morning was no picnic.

“Oh, definitely. To be honest, a lot of thoughts went through my head. I thought my year was finished. I thought my cruciate was done and not only was season done but you’re looking at a lot more than that.

“I’d seen the guys like Henry [Shefflin] and John Tennyson and what they had done to get back from that. It was massive.

“I went down to the ice chamber [Whites Hotel] on Sunday morning, [it] didn’t really help the injury and then went down to Tadhg O’Sullivan on the Monday and [I was] just dreading going into see Tadhg because I knew he’d be able to tell me straight away if the cruciate was gone.

“Thankfully, he examined me and said straight away that I hadn’t done it, it was just a bit of cartilage damage.”

There was genuine concern in Kilkenny when Power had the injury scare. As Shefflin slowly makes his way towards the exit sign, it is towards Power supporters turn their eyes to as the next leader of the attack.

He jokes that Shefflin could be around longer than him but says he doesn’t feel there is any onus on him to take the reins from the most decorated hurler in the game.

“Obviously, the more experienced you become the more you try and be a bigger leader in the team. What we try and do is take a little bit of the pressure off him, the likes of myself and Eoin Larkin. There definitely hasn’t been any pressure put on [me].”

The Leinster final defeat marked only Power’s second Championship defeat as a senior Kilkenny hurler. Such is their superiority that Dónal Óg Cusack reckons the team have changed the game but Power argues otherwise.

“That’s other people’s opinions and they’re entitled to their opinions but I don’t see any change that we’ve made since I joined the panel in 2005.

“There has been no change in the way we’ve trained, there has been no change in the way matches are being played in training.

“The physicality is there but that’s the way hurling has gone.’’

This past week, Power wouldn’t have attempted to shy away from the hype. His parents, Anne and two-time All-Ireland winner Richie Snr, will talk hurling with him. “My mother is probably the worst for it,” he smiles.

Living in Kilkenny city, he doesn’t mind talking to supporters but he knows the pitfalls to avoid in the build-up to Sunday.

“Obviously, you don’t want to be walking up and down High Street the week of an All-Ireland final but you wouldn’t be avoiding it. I’d never have any problems talking hurling with anybody I meet in the job or in Kilkenny city but you just want that kind of time to relax and let everything cool.

“I try and spend as much time with my son [Rory] in the build-up to it as well. It’s grand to get away from the whole hype of it.”

At 3.30 on Sunday afternoon, though, he changes roles from father to hurler. Does he feel Galway know the whirlwind that’s coming their way?

“I know a lot of people will hype it up as revenge and whatever but we’re not looking at it that day. All we’re looking at it is as an All-Ireland final, it’s Galway, it’s the second time we’ve played them in this year’s championship so we’re just going to try and prepare as best as we possibly can.”