GAELIC GAMES ALL-IRELAND FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP:KERRY'S ALL-IRELAND hopes suffered a significant blow yesterday when Kieran Donaghy's foot scan revealed damage that keeps the game's most accomplished full forward out of action for at least two months.

Donaghy was sidelined for 11 weeks after chipping a metatarsal bone in the National Football League final against Derry on April 26th but gave a decent account of himself for 46 minutes in Pearse Park against Longford last Saturday. The former footballer of the year came down heavily on his left foot midway through the second half, an incident manager Jack O’Connor claimed was a “stamp” by an opponent.

Donaghy was helped from the field and the Kerry attack noticeably wilted, with Longford making a contest of it in the final quarter.

Yesterday’s scan revealed the pin Donaghy had had inserted in his left foot (a common enough procedure for metatarsal injuries) was damaged in the fall, further inflaming the injury.

That O’Connor gave Donaghy his first championship run out at this juncture and the subsequent injury brings into question how fit the player actually was. However, metatarsal injuries are notoriously unpredictable, with numerous high profile soccer players, including David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen, suffering from the problem. A BBC sport straw poll of Premiership players revealed that rather than the usual six- to eight-week healing periods, it can sometimes take anything up to 21 weeks (in the case of Gary Neville and Danny Murphy) for some players to return to action.

This appears to be the time bracket around the Donaghy rehabilitation. The All-Ireland final is in 10 weeks, leaving the focal point of the Kerry attack up against a strenuous deadline. This means Kerry must make it to September without Donaghy’s aerial prowess bringing other forwards into play, especially Colm Cooper who despite his unique footballing ability struggles to win his own ball in tight matches.

Midfielder Michéal Quirke comes from a similar basketball background to Donaghy, although lacking his fellow Tralee Tiger’s mobility, may be tried out in the number 14 jersey against Sligo this Saturday in Tralee.

There is also a concern about former captain Declan O’Sullivan after he limped out of Saturday’s match with a knee injury.

Tadhg Kennelly and Paul Galvin are expected to return from injury and suspension respectively.