News round-up: Tipperary welcome back from injury John Carroll and Noel Morris for next Monday's National Hurling League final at Croke Park.
With Ger O'Grady also selected at full forward in place of Eugene O'Neill, the team shows three changes for the latest showdown with Kilkenny from that which breezed past Clare last Sunday.
Carroll has made a surprise recovery from the back injury which ruled him out of Tipperary's last few games and starts at right wing forward, with Mark O'Leary dropping to the bench. Morris has made an even quicker than expected recovery from a leg injury and replaces Aidan Butler at midfield.
There are also several more notable names listed among the replacements. Team captain Brian O'Meara is ready to resume playing after two broken toes sidelined him in recent weeks, while former All Star Eddie Enright is also in line for a return to action. Former Kilkenny captain Denis Byrne is also part of the back up for next Monday.
Kilkenny have delayed naming their side until after their final training session this evening, with the main question being whether Charlie Carter will lead out the team. The captain, who had struggled to hold down his place during the previous rounds, played last Sunday against Wexford after the recurrence of DJ Carey's neck injury allowed him to regain his place.
Manager Brian Cody - who has spent much of the last few weeks denying any sort of rift with his captain - has Carey back in contention for a starting place. Yet the main reason for the delay was yesterday's announcement that the Games Administration Committee (GAC) would not be taking action against Henry Shefflin and Philip Larkin, nor indeed Tipperary's Ger O'Grady, following incidents between the sides during their last league meeting on April 13th.
Cody was waiting for confirmation those players would be available. As the team didn't train last night, and with several more players carrying injuries, it was decided to defer team selection.
It is now known that the GAC decision not to take any action on the three players called to Croke Park on Wednesday was primarily based on video evidence. It was noted that in the incident involving Larkin and O'Grady, the referee had consulted with an umpire and adjudicated that only a yellow card was merited. In Shefflin's case, it was noted that the referee was, in fact, directly adjacent to the incident, and had decided no action was merited.
There is a doubt over the fate of Tipperary's Eamonn Corcoran, who was shown a straight red card in the game against Galway a week later, and who also made a personal appearance in Croke Park on Wednesday night. Having heard his case, the GAC decided further clarification was needed from the referee, and the matter was deferred until their next meeting.
Meanwhile, Diarmuid Healy was yesterday unveiled as Dublin's director of hurling in Parnell Park. The Kilkenny native and former Offaly manager will start his full-time appointment attempting to address a range of tasks, from the implementation of the Dublin hurling development plan to drawing up marketing campaigns to promote hurling in the capital.
TIPPERARY (SH v Kilkenny): B Cummins; M Maher, P Maher, B Dunne; B Horgan, D Kennedy, P Kelly; T Dunne, N Morris; J Carroll, C Gleeson, L Cahill; E Kelly, G O'Grady, L Corbett.
