SEAMUS CALLANAN HAS been hit with a further setback in his injury recovery as Tipperary prepare to start the Munster championship next Sunday.
Callanan broke a bone in his hand in early March and confirmed last month that he was set to miss Tipperary’s first two provincial senior hurling games, when they travel to play Waterford on Sunday and then host Clare in Thurles on 24 April.
Tipperary’s remaining ties sees them face Limerick on 8 May and Cork on 22 May, with Callanan having targeted those games for a potential return to action.
But manager Colm Bonnar admitted this morning that there is now a doubt over the 2019 All-Ireland winning captain’s participation, because of a fresh injury setback.
“In Seamie’s case, it’s a bit of a nightmare for him because the infection now is gone into the bone so it is going to be a bit longer in terms of trying to manage that injury that he got. That was bad enough but the infection has carried through now. It’s going to be very difficult for him.
“Denis Maher was the only chap (injured) that had a hip flexor injury, so he didn’t really take part in the last eight to ten days and will only be coming right.”
Bonnar finds himself in the role of Tipperary manager as teams adjust to a new era in hurling with the championship structure. The serious business begins on Easter Sunday, just a fortnight since the league concluded, and there will be a hectic schedule over the next six weekends.
It is a challenge for all squads and players who are battling injuries face a race against time to be available.
“A hamstring injury is normally is four to eight weeks. two injuries and you could miss the whole season, league and championship,” says Bonnar.
“(It’s) difficult to get your head around it because by the middle of next month there are going to be two huge teams in Munster and two in Leinster out of the championship. That’s going to be a big shock for a lot of the hurling world. It is a crazy time to be out of hurling, it’s hard to get your head around that when the games should only be starting.
“Having been involved in it this year, the old style of wintering well for a lot of inter-county players, there was a bit of time off between when their own club season finished and before the national league would start up.
“Looking at it now, if players aren’t fully fit when they come into to you, most of the club campaigns are finishing at the end of October, a lot of them are into November if they are into the final stages, there is just no time off for players any more.
“It’s a vicious circle and we found with players – we have a six-week period coming to the league where we are officially allowed to train and if you are not fit coming in there, you are straight away struggling.
“You are probably not making the league, the league will be over before you get your fitness and before you know it the championship is on top of you. It’s totally different, there is a five-month window from January to May and that is your championship season and it is over before you know it.
“It would be very unusual if they keep this format and it is going to be very hard to. (It) just means players if they want to play for their county they are going to have to keep that conditioning and preparedness constantly if they want to hurl at a high level.”
Get set for the summer by listening to The42 GAA Weekly’s Football Championship preview pod here, and get 50% off an annual membership when you sign up this week using the code CHAMPIONSHIP2022 at members.the42.ie
Highlights from The42 Membership / SoundCloud
