John Leahy will be out of hurling for a year. The dreaded news emerged yesterday after the Tipperary hurling icon had undergone surgery in Waterford for the knee injury sustained in the championship battle with Clare last weekend.
"John has had an operation to rebuild his cruciate ligament," said county PRO Liz Howard. "He'll be out for a year but he's only 31 in September and we're sure he'll be back in the blue and gold next year."
This is a major loss for Tipperary who will face either Limerick or Waterford in next month's Munster final. Leahy was bothered by injury throughout this year's National League but was fit again for the championship.
In a mildly controversial move - given the player's great form in last year's championship - manager Nicky English didn't start Leahy on Sunday. But Leahy raised the roof in Páirc Uí Chaoimh when introduced as a substitute just after the start of the second half.
Unfortunately he lasted only a minute before twisting the knee in an awkward fall. Although it was immediately feared that the injury was serious, yesterday's confirmation will be a big knock for Tipp's morale, as Leahy would have been expected to make a significant contribution to what is likely to be a lengthy championship.
