Sheehan suffers torn cruciate

GAA:Ciarán Sheehan will miss the rest of the season after it was confirmed the Cork forward tore his cruciate ligament during yesterday's Munster final. Sheehan was stretchered from the field in some distress ealy in the second half and subsequent scans confirmed cruciate damage.

No timescale has been given for his recovery but, given the nature of cruciate injuries, the 20-year-old’s championship campaign is now over. His absence will come as a major blow for manager Conor Counihan, who has already lost Colm O’Neill to a cruciate injury this season.

“The news comes as a huge disappointment to the Cork team and management, and of course to Ciarán and his club, Éire Óg,” Cork said in a statement released this afternoon. “All in Cork GAA wish him well in his recovery.

Kerry’s win in Killarney saw them installed as new favourites for the All-Ireland with the bookmakers but manager Jack O’Connor is clearly expecting to see Cork further down the line.

“Sure you have to take it at face value,” he said. “They were coming down as All-Ireland champions. We have a good record here at the stadium and didn’t want them coming down and beating us in our back yard. I know we were short personnel but we felt that the players that we had prepared very professionally for the game.

“Cork were going to have play very well to beat us and that is how it panned out. I wouldn’t be fancying getting Cork in the qualifiers though.”