Cathal Barrett will be back, predicts club chairman

Cathal Barrett will do “whatever it takes” to regain his place on the Tipperary hurling panel, his club’s chairman, Tom O’Dwyer said, after the Holycross-Ballycahill player was dropped from the county set-up for disciplinary reasons.

A Tipperary County Board statement confirmed the bombshell news, not long after Ryan met with his players in Thurles to discuss the fall-out from the recent Munster SHC quarter-final defeat at the hands of Cork.

Sources close to Barrett indicated the 2014 Young Hurler of the Year is extremely upset by Ryan’s decision but is determined to knuckle down, regain fitness, and regain a squad place.

Barrett sustained a grade 2 medial ligament strain in the Cork game and faces at least another six weeks out. That would have ruled him out of Tipperary’s opening All- Ireland SHC qualifier on July 1 in any event – but it’s unclear whether or not he will return at all this summer.

O’Dwyer insisted Barrett’s primary focus is on his recovery and, after that, he will look to force his way back into Ryan’s thinking.

“Cathal will do whatever it takes to regain his place and to help Tipp regain the Liam MacCarthy Cup,” said O’Dwyer. “I’m not privy to the decision made, that’s a matter between Cathal and the management team, but he has a serious knee injury that he’s rehabbing at the moment.

“Our concern from a Holycross point of view is that Cathal is fit as soon as possible for the Mid championship and the county championship.”

Tipperary’s players are expected to get together again over the weekend. Ryan is monitoring a number of injury concerns — Aidan McCormack (shoulder) and John McGrath (hamstring) were injured on club duty last weekend. But Donagh Maher came through a club game for Burgess while Michael Cahill is due to resume training.