GAA/Championship 2005 Munster hurling semi-final: Waterford manager Justin McCarthy has left two vacancies on the team to face Cork in this weekend's Munster hurling semi-final in Thurles. As expected both Ken McGrath and Paul Flynn will be subject to late fitness tests on Sunday morning. Séan Moran reports
The two current All Stars have been the subject of speculation all week but the hardening feeling in the county is that whereas McGrath, who has recovered from a broken collarbone but who lacks match practice, will probably start Flynn is extremely doubtful.
Otherwise there is some surprise in the county that Brian Phelan, who had such a consistent campaign as an ever-present at wing back in last season's team, has been omitted from the starting 15 for this weekend.
If, however, McGrath doesn't start the vacancy at centre back will probably see Phelan come in to the defence with James Murray, who deputised for McGrath during the National League, moving to number six with Phelan coming in on the wing.
There aren't extensive options to replace Flynn in the attack where the vacancy is at left-corner forward but Paul O'Brien is the likely replacement. Jack Kennedy, who scored three points as a replacement against Kilkenny last year, was largely overlooked during the league and is a longer shot.
The team to play Cork shows three changes from that team that lost to Kilkenny in the All-Ireland semi-final. Back in the team is former centre back Fergal Hartley, who captained the county to the Munster title in 2002 but who retired a year later before returning to the panel at the start of this year.
Hartley is named at full back, the position for which he has been groomed during the league, with Declan Prendergast dropping to the bench. Tom Feeney is back at corner back. Again he was someone who played a regular part in the league despite having been out of favour in last year's championship. He comes in as a replacement for Phelan.
Stephen Brenner is also back, in goal. Having made a serious error to gift Cork an early goal in last year's Munster final, Brenner was dropped in favour of Ian O'Regan for the All-Ireland semi-final.
Tyrone captain Brian Dooher has been named in the team to face Down in Sunday's Ulster football championship quarter-final. But he remains a doubt, having struggled with an ankle injury for the past two weeks, and may well be forced to sit out the Healy Park tie.
Manager Mickey Harte has named two debutants, both alongside Dooher in the half-forward line. Martin Penrose and Ryan Mellon, both of whom had outstanding NFL campaigns, play at centre forward and on the left wing respectively.
Stephen O'Neill and Owen Mulligan have both recovered from hamstring injuries and are also named in attack.
There's no place for the returned Peter Canavan. The All-Ireland winning captain made his comeback to the squad a couple of weeks ago following a self-imposed period of exile, but is named among the substitutes.
Chris Lawn has recovered from a leg injury and, as full back, anchors a defence which features four members of the 2003 All-Ireland winning side, including the entire half-back line. Lawn is the only surviving member of the team that reached the All-Ireland final against Dublin 10 years ago.
He made his most recent championship appearance when coming on as a replacement against Armagh two years ago when Tyrone won the county's first All-Ireland.
Lawn's last start for the county was also against Down in the drawn Ulster final of 2003 after which he was replaced by the late Cormac McAnallen as Mickey Harte made a number of changes in response to the concession of four goals.
Down bring in three newcomers for the match in what is a full-strength selection. Brendan McVeigh makes his debut in goal but is no relation to his namesake and predecessor Mickey, who has been the county goalkeeper since 1999. Other debutants are Gavin Barry at left-corner back and Damien Rafferty at left-wing back.
WATERFORD (SH v Cork): S Brenner; T Feeney, F Hartley, J Murray; T Browne, AN Other, E Murphy; D Bennett, E Kelly; D Shanahan, M Walsh, E McGrath; J Mullane, S Prendergast, AN Other. Subs: C Hennessy, K McGrath, P Flynn, I O'Regan, D Prendergast, B Phelan, D Coffey, L Lawlor, J O'Leary, B Wall, J Kennedy, P O'Brien, A Moloney, P Foley, W Hutchinson, E Rockett, G Power.
TYRONE (SF v Down): P McConnell; R McMenamin, C Lawn, S Sweeney; C Gormley, G Devlin, P Jordan; C Holmes, S Cavanagh; B Dooher, M Penrose, R Mellon; O Mulligan, S O'Neill, E McGinley.
DOWN (SF v Tyrone): B McVeigh; M Cole, A Scullion, G Barry; B Grant, A O'Prey, D Rafferty; A Molloy, D Gordon; L Doyle, A Rogers, J Clarke; D Hughes, B Coulter, R Murtagh.
DOWN (SH v Derry): Graham Clarke; L Clarke, S Murray, C Coulter; Gabriel Clarke, G Savage, S Wilson; G Adair, P Monan; E Clarke, G Johnson, B McGourty; M Coulter, E Trainor, S Clarke.
ANTRIM (SH panel v New York): Damien Quinn, J Campbell, M Scullion, J Scullion, S McFadden, C Herron, M Herron, P Cunningham, C McGuckian, C Cunning, Darren Quinn, P Richmond, M Hamilton, K Kelly, G Cunningham, B McFall, B Quinn, J McIntosh, M Kettle, G Bell, J Connolly, C Hamill, K Stewart.
