Dublin forced to wait on Keaney scan

THE DUBLIN hurling management are awaiting scan results on the injury sustained by Conal Keaney during Saturday’s 2-21 to 0-9 defeat to Kilkenny. The influential former dual star has only just returned from cruciate knee damage, sustained in a motorcycle accident last year, but was forced off after 14 minutes.

Keaney and centre back Joey Boland are the main concerns ahead of the All-Ireland qualifier against Clare on Saturday week in Ennis. Yesterday morning’s draw also has Cork entertaining Offaly on July 7th.

"It's the toughest possible draw for us considering how well they played yesterday," said Offaly manager Ollie Baker. "Last year's game is irrelevant," said Baker on hoganstand.comin relation to last year's one-point defeat. "Cork are a much more formidable outfit now and have regrouped very well from their league final defeat. It will be a hard job to gather the troops after what happened against Galway, but we're going to give it our best shot."

With the Cork footballers facing Clare in the Munster final on July 8th Eoin Cadogan will be forced to prioritise hurling or football. Last year Cadogan stuck with the hurlers when there was a clash.

Meanwhile, last night the Munster Council ruled out a venue change for the Munster SHC final between Waterford and Tipperary on July 15th. There was an outside chance of a move from Páirc Uí Chaoimh to Semple Stadium as Waterford were keen to play in Thurles.

Once a fixture decision has been made by the Munster CCC, any subsequent change requires a two-thirds majority. As a result of correspondence received yesterday from Waterford requesting a change to the original venue, a specially convened meeting of the Munster CCC last night reaffirmed the decision made on June 7th (to fix the final for Páirc Uí Chaoimh) on a vote of 8 to 2.