Cork captain Brian Hurley: Championship will show where we're really at

INJURY could delay the start of Cork captain Brian Hurley’s 11th championship season ahead of the Munster quarter-final against Clare in Ennis on Easter Sunday at 2pm.

The 31-year-old star forward, who made his debut in the win over Limerick a decade ago, is struggling with a niggling shoulder problem.

Hurley has played 18 Munster championship games for Cork, scoring five goals and 27 points, making his second appearance against the Banner in the 2013 semi-final, the Rebels winning by 1-20 to 1-11.

“I don’t really know because I’ve not pushed it yet in training,” the Castlehaven player said at the provincial championship launch on Wednesday.

“The injury happened last year and it flared up in the Dublin game. I just had to leave it settle down which is what I’ve been doing in the last few weeks.

“I’ve been running away but not being involved as much as I’d like to be. It’s the medics who’ll make the call.

“If you’re not capable and not 100% you’re probably wasting your time because there’s plenty of talent there who are knocking on the door and who can probably give more than I could.

“It wasn’t too bad in the early stages of the league, but I went down on it against Dublin and I knew I had to step back and get it right.

“It’s looking like an off-season job, being honest, and having a few proper discussions. I’m in Limbo, really, about what the body can actually do and number two it’s not up to me.” 

Hurley missed the 2017 season due to a well-documented hamstring injury and is well up to speed about the dangers of a premature return.

People are sick of hearing about my hamstring. You were fully dependent on other people to move from A to B and couldn’t get up the stairs or even brushing your teeth because you’re in a 90-degree brace.

“You look at the sports side of it, championship, Munster finals and then you have the day-to-day stuff. Depending on how bad the injury was you have to be an adult and look at it from that point of view.

“When championship comes around you do everything you can to get involved. Fellows have been going hammer and tongs in training in the last few weeks and they’re probably ahead of me.” 

Cork name their team tomorrow lunchtime with a doubt about corner-back Maurice Shanley, who has a hamstring injury.

Whether Hurley starts or not, either way he expects a full-on collision against a Clare side, whose season is on the line following relegation from Division 2.

“It’s going to be hostile up there. It always is. I remember playing up there in 2013 and it was chaos. It’s going to be a very tough, physical battle.

“We’ve played each other twice already this season and we know what Clare are about, yet it’s a matter of concentrating on our own game.

“It’s a massive game for them and we know what’s at stake, but we can only control what we can do ourselves.

“And championship is a different animal completely, finding out where you’re at and where you’re going, so it’s up to us to bring it to another level again.” 

MISSING

Even though Cork are definitely missing hamstring victim Cathail O’Mahony and with a big question mark over Hurley’s availability, scoring wasn’t an issue in the league when posting 14 goals and 95 points.

The skipper believes the infusion of youth has been a big factor. “The big thing for me is that the young fellows who’ve come in have really pushed on and then you’ve the older lads Deano (Ruairi Deane) who was doing well coming in off the bench and performing at the same level, when starting.

The level of competition within the whole panel is very healthy and it’s getting every inch out of everyone.

“Whether you’re starting or coming in, you are contributing and that’s the biggest thing I’ve noticed, even in training.

“There’s plenty of competition in the backs and it’s the same in the forwards. Okay, Cathail is out injured but if he was there, it would be even more exciting,” Hurley concluded.

The other quarter-final is between Tipperary and Waterford in Thurles also on Sunday at the same time. Limerick play either Cork or Clare in one semi-final while Kerry await the Thurles outcome.