Glenmore club captain and All-Star recipient for 2015, Kilkenny’s Ger Aylward may not puck a ball in anger for the remainder of 2016 after the news that he has suffered a potentially season-ending cruciate injury.
Ger spoke to KCLR this lunchtime about the injury, the clip of which you can hear in full below.
It was a freak accident enough, I was going in for a tackle and the Dungourney player hit me accidentally I suppose on the outside of my knee and whatever way I went down, I could feel a dunt (sic) inside of the knee and I knew it wasn’t good from there.
Tis a long road for recovery, but we’ll drive on for it.
Aylward’s worst fears were confirmed by Mr. Tadhg O’Sullivan in an appointment this week, the same specialist who had seen to Henry Shefflin’s knee injury in 2010.
“Tadhg Crowley organised an appointment for a scan with Dr. Tadhg O’Sullivan and I got down yesterday for the scan. Tadgh just told me then I tore the cartilage at the same time. Devastating… it’s the only word I can use.”
The Glenmore club captain is now expected to miss the entire of Kilkenny’s championship season and depending on recovery, may not even feature for Glenmore in 2016’s intermediate league and championship in Kilkenny, though fans will remain optimistic for the 2015 All-Star recipient.
A return to the specialist beckons in three weeks time before surgery and at that stage Aylward is looking at 9 months out of action “before returning to full hurling”.
On an optimistic note, Aylward says he’ll “be there with them all the way” as Glenmore look to pick up a Junior All-Ireland title in Croke Park on 7 February.
Listen below to the full conversation with KCLR’s Stephen Byrne.
