My final motivation

When Michael Fennelly couldn’t even walk without feeling pain in his back, he could hardly have imagined the celebrations he would be part of only a few months later as Kilkenny won a 35th All-Ireland title.

Fennelly had felt something wasn’t right despite scoring three points against Offaly in the Leinster quarter-final in June, before he suffered a back spasm in training two days before the semi-final against Galway.

The source of the problem was unclear, as was a precise diagnosis, but it necessitated more than a month spent on medication to control the spasms. Worse, the 2011 Hurler of the Year had no idea how long it would keep him out.