TIPPERARY ALL-IRELAND hurling winner Michael Cahill is focusing for now on a comeback with his club Thurles Sarsfields rather than reviving his county career after injuries have ruined his last 18 months as a player.
Cahill, a key member of two Liam MacCarthy Cup triumphs with Tipperary, has been absent of late after tearing his cruciate in a county senior hurling semi-final in October 2018 and then breaking his kneecap in a club training session last summer when attempting to return to action.
Speaking to Our Game presenter Shane Stapleton today as part of a wide-ranging interview, Cahill outlined his current fitness situation.
Having missed out on Tipperary’s successful season in 2019, Cahill got back running in December, resumed training with Thurles Sarsfields from early January and made first appearance in a local league game in March before the shutdown of GAA activity due to the ongoing Covid-19 crisis.
“You have to take small steps so my main aim was to get back hurling with the club at the moment. I haven’t been talking to Liam (Sheedy) now for a long time at this stage but sure look they’ve their own boat to paddle and I’ve my own goals. If a call did come down the line sure you’d have to weigh it up and consider these things as well but my main aim is just getting myself back on the field, taking small steps.
“Mine (torn cruciate) was at the end of the year, it was at a bad time if you’re looking at hurling inter-county the year after. I was just coming back (in 2019), I was on my third or fourth training session with the club and just an unfortunate event happened, I took a ball into contact and my kneecap broke in two. It was so rare what happened. Hindsight is great that I should have been taking my time and that but it wouldn’t be in me to take my time.
“Plenty more hurling in me but to what level is another side of it. If I was to even get back hurling with the club at a high level, I’d be delighted. One day at a time. You have to keep an open mind to these things, whatever comes. It is what it is. I’ve been out nearly a year and a half but I’m in a good place at the moment if we could finally get a bit of hurling back, it’d be great.”
31-year-old Cahill has enjoyed a highly decorated career in Tipperary colours winning All-Ireland medals at senior (2010 and 2016), U21 (2010) and minor (2006 and 2007). He has also been central to several county senior triumphs with his club Thurles Sarsfields and won an All-Star award for his displays with Tipperary at 2011.
Part of a hugely talented group that progressed through the underage ranks, he is hoping to emulate the successful recovery from injury of other Tipperary hurlers.
“You’d take inspiration from the likes of Brendan Maher there and Bonner Maher. Luckily enough I hurled with them coming up along and just the way it was, the three of us did cruciates at the same time and we were able to bounce stuff off each other.
“It’s nice to see a bit of light at the end of the tunnel there with Brendan last year, he’d a fantastic year, probably one of the best years he ever hurled for club and county. That’s a massive positive note.”
Check out the full interview here with Michael Cahill on ‘Our Game’.
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