James Ryan takes time out to consider Limerick future

Limerick senior hurling manager John Kiely has revealed that James Ryan is taking time out to consider his inter-county future.

Ryan, who will be 30 next April, was not named on a 39-man provisional panel for the 2017 season yesterday, as Kiely moved to infuse his squad with fresh blood.

All 15 starters from the 2015 All-Ireland U21 final victory over Wexford are included in the extended list, as well as Andrew La Touche Cosgrave and Peter Casey, who were both introduced as subs in the Semple Stadium victory.

Half a dozen of those U21 heroes, namely winning captain Diarmaid Byrnes, Richie English, Tom Morrissey, Gearóid Hegarty, Cian Lynch, and Barry Nash, have already made their senior championship debuts and more could follow next year.

Kiely has warned, however, that competition for places will be fierce as he whittles down his squad later in the campaign while also monitoring the form and fitness of other players.

Paudie O’Brien is a high-profile omission while Kevin Downes, currently recovering from a cruciate knee ligament injury, is not included either.

Kiely has vowed, however, that management will keep in touch with Downes to monitor his progress with a view to a return while versatile Garryspillane clubman Ryan, who made his debut for the county in 2008 and was man of the match in the 2013 Munster final, will make a decision on whether or not to commit to another season of inter-county fare in the New Year.

“Kevin is recovering, he had his operation during the summer,” said Kiely.

“We’ll keep in touch with Kevin during the course of the coming months. The most important thing for Kevin is to get his recovery and rehab done. He’s not going to be lost off our radar in the months ahead.”

And he added: “James Ryan is taking a bit of time away.

“He was a dual footballer and hurler for a number of years, he’s 29 now and needed some time and to rest, number one, and to make a decision on whether he wants to continue or not. That’s his situation.”

Kiely also stressed that the door is not closed on any players showing form worthy of forcing their way into his plans.

“We’ve identified a number of players on the U21 panel from last year that we’d like to see coming through in the future. There’s an opportunity to bring them through but there’s no guarantee that they’ll able to survive at this level.”

Meanwhile, Sean Cavanagh has fuelled speculation that he will remain on with Tyrone for a 16th season after posting a short message on his Twitter account.

“One for the road,” he tweeted yesterday.

The 33-year old was dismissed for a second bookable offence at the end of Tyrone’s All-Ireland quarter-final defeat to Mayo, with manager Mickey Harte confidently asserting last month that it would not be the last time Sean Cavanagh togged out for Tyrone. Cavanagh is only one of three survivors from the 2008 All-Ireland winning side.