Canning and Forde looking doubtful for Galway opener

JOE CANNING has emerged as a doubt for Galway’s Leinster hurling championship opener against Westmeath on Sunday after suffering a recurrence of the shoulder injury which sidelined him for most of their league campaign.

Canning took a heavy knock to his shoulder in a training match against Clare on Monday evening and had to go off. Galway manager Anthony Cunningham is hopeful that Canning will recover in time to start on Sunday.

Canning ruptured his AC joint playing for LIT in the Fitzgibbon Cup in February and missed all of Galway’s scheduled league games but returned for the relegation matches against Dublin.

“Hopefully, he will be okay for Sunday but we will give him as long as possible to recover during the week,” said Cunningham. “He took a heavy knock to the same shoulder that had been injured and it is the sort of injury that can be unsettling.”

Canning did not start against Westmeath last year because of injury but was introduced in the second half and helped inspire a late rally which saw off the challenge of Brian Hanley’s men.

Meanwhile, experienced defender David Collins is also facing a race against time to be available for Sunday in Mullingar after suffering an ankle injury against Clare on Monday evening.

“Similar to Joe we will wait until later in the week to see how David recovers but he, too, is a doubt at this stage,” added Cunningham.

The Galway footballers have an equally worrying concern over Michael Meehan ahead of their Connacht semi-final against Sligo on June 10th.

Meehan has been struggling with an ankle injury since facing the same opposition last summer.

“I know he played a club match at the weekend,” said team-mate Finian Hanley yesterday. “I think he played all right. I don’t think he played it all but he came through all right. But I don’t think 70 minutes is on the cards for him yet. Hopefully if we can last into late June, July, he’ll be able to see 70 minutes before the middle of summer but I don’t think at the minute he is ready for a full 70.

“It takes him a lot of time to recover after the games. Even the 20 minutes he played against Roscommon, it was three or four days with the foot up after.”

Meanwhile, Wexford manager Jason Ryan must plan without Aindreas Doyle and Andrew Shore ahead of Sunday’s Leinster football quarter-final against Longford.

“We’ve had very good preparation while we’ll be hoping to improve in areas which were exposed in the league final,” said Ryan of the Division Three final defeat to Fermanagh.

“While the injuries are a blow we’ve strength in depth, for championship football one has got to be always ready for such setbacks. We’re confident and we’re ready to meet the challenge.”