BRIAN HURLEY HAS added to Cork’s list of absentees as they prepare to commence their Division 3 football league campaign this weekend but his manager Ronan McCarthy has insisted the forward’s latest hamstring injury is not as serious as his previous setbacks.
Hurley’s career has been hampered by severe hamstring injuries but he returned to fitness and form in style in 2019 with his exploits earning an All-Star nomination.
He will be unavailable though for Cork’s opener at home to Offaly next Saturday along with a group of other established players.
“Brian Hurley hurt his hamstring last Saturday morning training, nothing too serious but it will keep him out for a few weeks,” revealed McCarthy, speaking at a press event last night in Páirc Uí Chaoimh.
“At this point any little niggle you are looking at minimum of two weeks there. James Loughrey isn’t ready, the Nemo lads only came back in Saturday. They are back in but it will take them a couple of weeks to get up to speed, certainly the outfield players.
“Tom Clancy Fermoy had an Achilles issue from the Tyrone game last year, but he is training and pain free.
“Nathan Walsh and Kevin Flahive, you can write off the league for both. Nathan didn’t have surgery, it’s a rehab job. Either way, the rehab might be slightly longer than the surgery, he was in London with a specialist.”
McCarthy admitted that the frequency that which hamstring injuries hit their squad is something management are conscious of.
“It is an issue we have discussed, regular medical team meetings, all types of injuries. Pre-season involves a lot of heavy work, a lot of games, we have a few hamstring issues but they are all low level. You look at
way so trying to bring that number down, but it’s part and parcel of it at this stage.
“To be fair to Kevin Smith and S&C they would do an awful lot in relation to monitoring of minutes. Rather than look at Saturday and select whatever team we want to put out, we must take account of how much football these fellas have played.
“Doing the right thing by the player instead of the right thing by the team. You can make a short term decision to try and win the game but you might pay a price for that if the player is fatigued.”
Cork are currently operating with a 40-man squad which McCarthy revealed they will reduce down to 35 after Round 3 of the league. Four members of his squad – Anthony Casey, Aidan Browne, Killian O’Hanlon and Damien Gore – will be in action for Cork IT in the Trench Cup this Wednesday.
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