*Kevin Harnett. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
Clare’s Kevin Harnett is unlikely to feature in this year’s championship after sustaining an achilles injury.
Approaching almost a decade as a Clare senior football panellist, the Meelick man was forced off with injury in Sunday’s encounter with Cork as Colm Collins’ side picked up their first defeat of the year.
Harnett was substituted with twenty one minutes played in Clare’s 0-22 1-18 defeat, the departure of the Newmarket-on-Fergus clubman also coincided with Cork taking control of the contest as they blitzed the Banner in the second quarter with six scores in succession.
Speaking after Sunday’s encounter, Clare manager, Colm Collins stated, “My view of an achilles injury is he won’t play in the championship. It is one of the slowest injuries to heal,” the Cratloe clubman lamented. Clare face Kerry in the Munster SFC quarter-final in Killarney on June 26th.
Collins commented that it was “not all sad” as Kevin and his wife Rachel welcomed a baby girl into the world at 3am on Sunday morning.
Results from the scans to determine the extent of the injury are not known as of yet.
It does force Collins and his management team to change the planned make-up of their defence. Eoghan Collins, Dean Ryan, Alan Sweeney and Conall Ó hÁiniféin are among those hoping to nail down a starting jersey in the absence of Harnett.
There is some positive news on the injury front for the footballers with the manager confirming that both Podge Collins and Jamie Malone “should be in the mix” for the NFL promotion clash with Mayo on Sunday week.
