YOUNG KILKENNY HURLER James Maher is still hopeful of featuring in the 2016 season despite breaking his kneecap in a farming accident last month.
Maher performed brightly for Kilkenny in the league this year as he made his breakthrough, particularly when shooting 0-4 against Tipperary.
But his campaign suffered a major setback when the freak accident occurred on his family farm in Freshford in April.
“Basically my Dad was driving a JCB and he hit one of the gates by accident,” recalled Maher.
“I was leaning on the gate so when it hit the gate, that sent me up (in the air).
“I came down and landed on the concrete and broke my kneecap.
“He was fairly cut up about it anyway. It was just a bit of a freak accident. It was unlucky but I’ll keep going anyway.
“(It) could have been a lot worse. If I’d landed on my head I obviously could have done more damage.
Maher underwent surgery after the accident.
“I had to get pins and a wire put into my kneecap. Actually at the time I thought I was okay because I was able to walk after it happened.
“But it was very sore at the time. I said I’d go in and just get an X-Ray and it turned out to be broken.
“I thought originally that, ‘ah, it’s only a broken bone, six to eight weeks at the most’ and then finding out that it could be six or 12 months even, just the way that injury is.
“It’s short enough to heal but afterwards is the problem with the muscle loss and getting pain in it then.
“I’m hoping to get back running in the next two weeks and to get back hurling in the next five or six (weeks).
“But it depends how the recovery goes in the next couple of weeks.”
He still harbours ambitions of a senior return this summer but one game Maher will definitely miss is Kilkenny’s opening clash in the Bord Gáis Energy Leinster U21HC against Westmeath next Wednesday night.
The St Lachtain’s club man has enjoyed working with former Kilkenny attacking great Eddie Brennan, the new U21 hurling boss, this season.
“It would be terrible to miss your last year at U21. I might not and hopefully they go far enough that I can get back playing.
“Eddie Brennan is over us. I always looked up to him as a hurler when I was younger.
“It was weird to see him training us and giving us advice and stuff. It’s a great boost.”
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