Injury Watch

Saw Mikey Conway warming up and kicking ball yesterday before the game, he looked like he was quite fit and was moving well but in his post match interview Geezer said he needed to go back to Sweden for another op. Does anybody know if this is a minor job or is he done for the year again.

Any news on the other lads while we are at it.

it's relatively minor, cartilage I think but they just wanted, for his own sake to get to do a bit of running and kick a ball, to give him some mental ease... but he's a good bit away. Wouldn't think he'll kick a ball in the league anyway.

Even if he gets fit he has not played a match in almost 2 years, would need 4 weeks playing to regain sharpness needed for county

Kildare's Michael Conway is facing further surgery as his 20-month battle to get back playing competitively continues.

The stylish wing-back is on his way to Sweden in the next 10 days for surgery to repair cartilage damage on his 'good' knee, a procedure that will keep him out of Kildare's final two league games against Tyrone and Sligo.

Conway has been sidelined since rupturing his cruciate ligament against Wicklow in the 2009 qualifiers.

He missed all of last season and his recuperation has been slower than average for such an injury.

Kildare manager Kieran McGeeney confirmed that Conway still has a journey to travel to get himself right.

"He has to go to Sweden next week. He has a wee bit of cartilage damage on the other knee," said McGeeney.

"We didn't want to do that earlier in the year. It's been tough enough for the fella. We just wanted him back doing a bit of running and kicking a ball. Hopefully we'll see him coming up to the summer."

The return date for Kildare's other cruciate ligament victims is not yet clear. Dermot Earley is making progress but is looking at the latter end of the summer.

All Star corner-back Peter Kelly is back in the gym after his operation last month but hopes of him making a dramatic comeback later in the season are not encouraging.

"He'd be doing very well to get back," said McGeeney. "He's walking around. He's a tough boyo. He was trying to get rid of the crutches coming out of the hospital. He's doing bits and pieces in the gym already."

McGeeney confirmed that he has added Anthony Rainbow to his backroom team. Rainbow retired after last year's campaign and was installed as an U-21 selector.

But he has been elevated to the senior management and will operate in an advisory capacity, taking an overview from the stands during games.

"He's having a look at different things. I always like to get different points of view," said McGeeney.

"Contrary to popular belief, I don't believe I'm always right. It's good to get another set of eyes and I asked him to look at different things up in the stand. He's doing very well, giving us a different outlook.

Meanwhile, Meath will welcome Kevin and Graham Reilly back to training tonight as their battle to avoid relegation from Division 2 intensifies.

"We have Kevin Reilly, Stephen Bray, David Bray, Peadar Byrne and Graham Reilly, who should be in contention for the Derry match, so the likes of those will certainly help what we started on Sunday," said manager Seamus McEnaney, who was pleased with his side's performance in defeat to Kildare at the weekend.

"We'd be hopeful both Reillys will be able to play a part (against Derry). Stephen Bray is also home next week."

Bray has been on honeymoon for the last three months and his return will be a boost to an attack that badly needs his pace.

McEnaney remains confident that Meath can avoid the drop.

"We're a long way from the last game in the league and if it goes to the last minute against Tyrone in Navan and we survive and we get two more performances in an upward trend from where we were on Sunday, I'll be happy enough."

- Colm Keys

Irish Independent

Depressing reading. Looks like we won't have Dermot until the All Ireland final.

How about Ciaran Fitzpatrick ?

Just goes to show the strength of the squad that we are still fairly competitive without 2 All stars and player of Mikeys class. In the case of Mikey it looks like he is doing all he can to get back on the pitch and aint throwing in the towel yet.

There's nothing there we didn't know already.... Dermot was never going to be ready for championship football until end of July/August, everything going well.

Just for accuracy's sake, what Geezer said about Kelly was that he looked like he was going to chew up the crutches. And he was never gonna be back unless he chanced the LARS surgery and no-one over here seems to be doing that, there seems to be some doubt about it. Otherwise, it's nine months and that, because it's worth repeating, is all things going well which isn't a certainty with cruciates.

Management will have been working with those three out of their minds. It's a team for the first round of the championship they want and it'll be a fairly strong one with some good men on the bench.

Agree Ogie, knee injuries are seriously tricky and a recovery time can vary hugely and any re-introduction would need to be done slowly. I'm sure the management team are planning without these players, which as someone said above is incredible to be missing two All-Stars. There is no doubt if we had Earley and Kelly at the peak of their powers this year I would seriously fancy Kildare this year.
Have to give Geezer credit for building a strong panel since his arrival. Alot of players knocking on the door now. Kildare used to have 1 scoring forward now they are all well able to take their scores which is a huge bonus.

Hopefully no more injuries though!

Blades banned as club bids to eradicate cruciate injuries

Fermanagh club St Patrick's have outlawed bladed football boots in a bid to end a spate of cruciate ligament injuries.

The Irish Independent reports that four players from the club suffered the dreaded cruciate rupture last year, and that new-fangled boots may be to blame.


Club chairman Paddy Boyle told the paper, "We had never seen anything like it before. The only common denominator was that the four lads were wearing blades. So, we've asked the lads to stick to moulded boots or studs."

Cruciate ligament injuries have become a common scenario in GAA circles.

Three Kildare players - including two-time former All Star Dermot Earley - are currently sidelined following cruciate ops, while Kerry's David Moran and Cork star Colm O'Neill ruptured their cruciate ligaments in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, internationally renowned physio Ger Hartmann, who treated Kilkenny's Henry Shefflin and John Tennyson in the build-up to last year's All-Ireland hurling final, insists the injuries themselves have always been prevalent in the GAA, but that better diagnosis and treatment nowadays gives players a chance of making a full recovery.

Quoted in Wednesday's Irish Times, he said, "Go back 10 or 15 years and they'd be depending on an X-ray, but that didn't show a cruciate, which could be torn, or completely gone.

"Now you have an MRI in every hospital, and places like the Santry Clinic, so diagnostics are way more expedient, within days of the trauma. So as Pat Spillane says, cruciate injuries were always there, but players were told the knee was badly inflamed, arthritis even. You played on if you could, and if you couldn't you retired. But these injuries were always there, just not as readily diagnosed."

Worse news possible, just on KFM that Dermot has done his cruciate again. gone for the year and I suspect that he won't be back in a white Jersey again. Terrible news.

Best of luck Dermot, you deserve better than this.

I know it looks like I was telling untruths now, but as of Tuesday everything was ok. Scan results today showed he has ruptured it again.

Ah no that's awful. For his own sake he might be better off retiring incase all these injuries come back to haunt him in a few years with arthitis or that. It's sad to see him go out like this if he does go though. He's been such a great player for Kildare for so long.

It's really awful news about Dermot, he must be devasted, you'd really have to feel for him at the moment. Wonder will we ever see him in the white jersey, really hope so, he owes us nothing though. Just wish him a speedy recovery.....

Devastating news. That's really f*cked up my good mood for the weekend. Best of luck for the future Dermot. Like the guys are saying you owe us nothing.

Heartbreaking stuff for him. Cant imagine how he must be feeling. Would hate for a player of his calibre and class to see his career just fizzle out with this injury. Pray to god he gets back at some point and that he gets an opportunity to finish it off with the style he deserves.

Shocking news, why does it only happen to the best!

A living Lilywhite legend!

god,pure sickening,will struggle to come back from this,cud keep coming back to him!!gonna be missed some amount this year!!

He will be missed. I'd say it could be the end of his playing days unfortunately. It's a terrible shame because had he taken the field against Down, I do believe we'd have seen the 3rd Sunday in Sept. last year and possibly could have won it. On another note it's now up to the management to get midfield sorted for once and for all. Unfortunately Dermot won't be back so now it's time to plan for the future.

I Don't think we will ever see him fielding ball from the clouds in the all white again, like to wish him the best of luck and hope he makes a full recovery from his injury.

Ah lads. If there's one thing we know about Dermot is that he's a fighter and he won't give up.

I'll be keeping my hopes up that he will come back from this

If Dermot has his way, he'll be back next year. Hopefully he has a say in it and gets a clear run at the rehab.

As for it being up to the management to solve midfield, that's easier said than done. While I'm constantly playing down the league, one of the things the management would have been doing (along with settling goalkeeper and trying to unearth another man-marker or two), was work on midfield because at the earliest, Dermot wouldn't have been back until July anyway and maybe later.

The facts are, that there aren't many contenders for inter-county level. Flynner had to be eased back in but you'd imagine he'll start midfield tomorrow now with Paidi, whatever team has been named (has a team been named?)

Anyway, drive on Dermot, you owe us nothing but hope to see ya back on the park next year

I agree, I'd never write him off, it is a huge set back for him personally and for kildare this year,

Best wishes Dermot, you can be sure that you have the whole countys support

Earley's worst fears confirmed

Kildare's Dermot Earley
09 April 2011


The inter-county future of Kildare midfielder Dermot Earley is in doubt after it was confirmed that he had ruptured the cruciate ligament that had kept out of the latter stages of last year's championship.

It is a cruel blow for the 32-year-old who has had a turbulent 12 months on and off the field and this latest setback could see the former All-Star decide to hang up his boots, although it would be a great shame to see him end his career in such a fashion.



Earley hurt his knee in training after he was making steady progress in his recovery and had targeted a July comeback, but not he has to start his recovery all over again and it will be next year when he is fit again.

The news will come as a big blow to Kildare football as they hoped to build on last year's success of reaching the All-Ireland semi final, where they lost narrowly to Down at the penultimate stage of the campaign.

From Hoganstand,,

A massive blow but it's very premature to be writing that great man off just yet.

i hope your right fionn hes had a tough career though after fighting the cancer and now this. some legand the best fielder ive ever seen maybe we will see him again in a white jersey but as said before he owes us nothing.