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Pat Gilroy at yesterday's O'Byrne Cup quarter final ©INPHO/Lorraine O'Sullivan
Injuries

Black and blue: Dublin without six for league opener

Pat Gilroy’s Dublin will be shorn half a dozen players when Kerry come to town while Donegal captain Michael Murphy may require surgery.

REIGNING ALL-IRELAND Champions, Dublin, look set to be without a half dozen players when the Allianz League begins early next month.

Footballer of the year Alan Brogan and brother, Bernard, are the headline absentees. The former faces four weeks on the sidelines with a knee injury while the latter is expected to return from holiday only days before the opening fixture against Kerry. Denis Bastick is another citing holidays (a honeymoon in his case) as the reason for his absence.

Pat Gilroy suggested that Barry Cahill, Kevin Nolan and Paul Griffin would also miss the fixture as they each near rehabilitation from an assortment of knocks. Gilroy told the Irish Examiner:

“You’d love to have everyone back and available but there’s no point rushing fellas back from injuries either.”

Meanwhile, outside the capital, there is also bad news for Donegal as Michael Murphy joins the list of big names set to miss a chunk of league action.

The Donegal Democrat reported that the county captain, 22, injured his groin in action with DCU and a Donegal spokesperson told TheScore.ie that the forward will be reassessed tomorrow to determine whether or not surgery is required.

Donegal boss Jim McGuinness certainly was in no mood to rush Murphy back before beginning the defence of their Ulster title in May.

“It won’t be a decision based on trying to get him back within a timeframe or trying to get him back for the start of the league or halfway through the league or whatever it takes.” McGuinness told RTÉ radio.

“It is important that we get the proper treatment and rehabilitation plan for him. He is 22-years of age so obviously we want to protect him as best we can. Rushing players back, when an injury is any way serious, would be a danger.”

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