GAELIC GAMES NEWS:SO SEVEN weeks after their original date – and nine weeks after their respective semi-finals – Kilmacud Crokes and Rhode get to play their AIB Leinster club football final.
Sunday’s game in Portlaoise was twice postponed last month due to the freezing conditions.
Naturally, the long break hasn’t been ideal for either team, although the expectation Kilmacud Crokes might benefit from the postponements hasn’t exactly transpired. Their long list of unavailable players is effectively just as long, and while Adrian Morrissey has benefited in that his suspension has expired, manager Paddy Carr is still without several first choice players.
Kilmacud’s absentees have been well documented: Paul Griffin and Mark Davoren both missed the entire Dublin and Leinster campaigns recovering from a cruciate ligament tears; Darren Magee has been recovering from a dislocated ankle sustained last August; while Rory O’Carroll and Niall Corkery are overseas, and also injured.
“Paul Griffin is probably furthest up the road in terms of his programme of recovery,” says Carr. “But he’s not match fit yet, and hasn’t played any part in match situations. He’s still unclear exactly when he can take to the field. Darren Magee is working away on his recovery, but his return wouldn’t be anything like imminent either.
“Mark Davoren’s coming off a double cruciate operation and would be the most long-term of them all. On the positive side we do have Adrian Morrissey back. We always maintained there was an injustice there, so that has certainly righted itself.”
O’Carroll is based in Orléans, 180 kilometres south-west of Paris, on an Erasmus programme for the academic year. He had been commuting back and forth for Kilmacud’s Leinster campaign, but sustained an ankle ligament sprain playing in the Dublin Blue Stars game early in the New Year.
“He returned to France two days later,” explains Carr, “and is recovering. But it’s very unlikely he’ll play any part on Sunday. The plan for now is he will be travelling home anyway.
“But he hasn’t really been able to do anything, on top of the fact he’s been so far away from us.
“The situation with Niall Corkery is he’s had an ongoing knee problem, but is currently focused on his new work commitments in London. So we’ve had to plan without him as well.”
When addressing how Kilmacud have coped with their extended break, Carr is quick to point out they’re no worse off than their opponents: “Obviously Rhode are in the same position as well in terms of the delay. And we have massive respect for them. I know how much this means to them as well, and I’ve no doubt they’re ready for a big performance as well, which should make this a special final.
“But our situation was a little unusual anyway in that we have so many players with other commitments, whether it’s county, under-21s, or whatever. So we never really got our panel together as much as we’d liked to, until the start of the Leinster championship. Then the snow and weather played havoc, as it was dangerous just to ask guys to come to training. So effectively the whole month of December was wiped out.
“But certainly there’s no sense of tiredness, or lack of eagerness. At this stage they’re just enjoying the fact of being together at this time of year, and injuries really aren’t being talked about. The real story behind the injuries is the fact that so many young lads have stepped forward, seen this as an opportunity, and not as a blow for the team. So the important thing is that our mindset is right, and that certainly seems to be the case.”
Kilmacud blew off some of the cobwebs in a challenge against Kildare last Friday evening (losing by a couple of points) and despite the long break, look set to start Sunday’s game with practically the same team that beat Garrycastle in the Leinster semi-final, back on November 21st. Given that includes such talents as midfielders Craig Dias and Paddy Duggan, proven forwards Brian Kavanagh and Mark Vaughan, and able defenders Ross O’Carroll and Kevin Nolan, the nine-week break shouldn’t make much of a difference at all.
