Moloney awaits test on eye

A month of hurling congestion for Tipperary won't by helped by an injury list that has been further extended following their National Hurling League semi-final against Limerick on Sunday.

The latest concern is the eye injury suffered by midfielder Andy Moloney. In addition, defender Paul Ormonde and forward Declan Ryan were unable to take their places on the team because of recurring injuries, both players being withdrawn just before the game.

Moloney was carried off about 15 minutes from time with a nasty eye injury received after an accidental hit under a dropping ball. He continues to be detained in Ardkeen Hospital in Waterford for further observation.

With considerable swelling around the eye, it will be another couple of days before the exact nature of his injury can be disclosed. The injury casts a major doubt over Moloney's participation in the league final.

The problems for Ormonde (torn rib cartilage) and Ryan (arthritic toe) are deemed less serious. It is, however, a little too early to know whether these players will be available for the final against Galway on Sunday week. Either way, it is further concern for manager Nicky English that he could certainly do without.

With Tipperary set to meet Waterford in Pairc Ui Chaoimh for the first round of the Munster hurling championship on May 28th - two weeks after the league final in Limerick - English's views on the timing of the league become even more relevant. In many ways, it's a case of the two competitions running straight into each other.

The Tipperary manager again highlighted the problem of the league suffering by its timing after Sunday's game: "It's a worthwhile competition but it's being throttled by the championship. It wouldn't be difficult to organise it a little different, maybe bring it forward a few weeks," he said.

So the old idea of the league title being one reward that nobody wants won't quite disappear. Galway are the exception in that they desperately need the games since their championship doesn't begin until early July but for most other counties - and Munster in particular - it still seems to come out the worse in the conflict of interest with the championship.

Tipperary's meeting with Galway will be their fourth league final clash since 1994 - with Tipperary winning that year and again last year while Galway had a two-point win in 1996. The Gaelic Grounds, which has a capacity of around 36,000, was the predetermined venue decided by the Games Administration Committee should these two teams come through on Sunday. The final will be preceded by the All-Ireland Vocational Schools' hurling final.

Limerick's defeat on Sunday means that the All-Ireland under-21 football final on Saturday week can press ahead as planned. So there will be no distractions for the historic Limerick footballers as they attempt to win their first title when they take on Tyrone. The venue will be Mullingar (2.30) - a game scheduled to be broadcast live on RTE.