With an obvious sense of ill-timing Dublin hurling manager Ger Cunningham has confirmed the loss of two players ahead of their Leinster championship opener against Galway on Sunday week.
Midfielder Niall McMorrow sustained a hand tendon injury at training which will keep him out of action for between four to six weeks, while defender Ross O’Carroll has opted to concentrate on club hurling and football for the summer, and is now unlikely to feature at any stage.
“It’s very disappointing, for Niall, himself,” explained Cunningham. “It was just an injury to the tendon that holds the thumb in place.
“He has done some damage to that. He’s going in to see the specialist but he has been ruled out for the next few weeks at least.
“And Niall has been trying to establish himself for the last couple of years. He’s probably more renowned as a corner-forward. But he played a couple of club matches midfield and we just said we would give him a go there. He’s a very fit guy. A very good hurler.
Disappointed
“So he’s really disappointed that he’s missing out for the next couple of matches. But hopefully his season won’t be over. Hopefully he’ll be back.
“The danger with the injury is that if you leave it go, it could develop into something that would be harder to fix later on. It looks like he needs an operation to put back the tendon. Hopefully it will only be four to six weeks.”
O’Carroll, meanwhile, has decided to concentrate on the Dublin club championship, with Kilmacud Crokes, although Cunningham would welcome back should he decide to change his mind.
“He just wants to put his attention on club hurling and football. He has been on and off with a couple of injuries. Nothing major. Just niggling injuries.
“But I think there is club football in Dublin on June 6th, it’s knock out, and he’s a very club focused guy anyway, so he pulled out.
“It’s disappointing. He has been there since the start of the year. But the door is always open, but if you’re pulling out at this time of the year, I would imagine that’s the decision made for this year anyway.”
