Standing by while Galway march on 'difficult' for…

Standing by while Galway march on 'difficult' for injured Seán Mulkerrin

Sean Mulkerrin makes a clarification when asked about his ‘broken’ knee cap - it was actually shattered.

By the time he returns to competitive action Mulkerrin may have missed a full year’s football having sustained the injury while playing in the Sigerson Cup for NUIG last January.

“It was knee on knee and I was kind of planted and he was coming at speed, a small corner-forward just coming at speed and just hit the sweet spot or the bullseye and kind of shattered the kneecap so it wasn’t pleasant now,” he explains.

Indeed, with the match against Ulster University nearly over and NUIG leading by two points, it was eventually abandoned and the Galway college were declared the winners after the ambulance took an age to arrive.

"I was a half-hour waiting for the ambulance but I was in a bit of agony. I wasn't even realising what time had gone and it only hit me, then when you are getting the messages and phone calls and how long are you waiting, a few days or a few weeks after. I didn't really pay too much attention to it at the time.”

A cruciate ligament rupture is considered the worst of all knee injuries but Mulkerrins’ is far more rare.

“As far as I am aware it is not as recurrent, as long as you do the proper rehab, as a cruciate ligament would be. It's not one to keep popping up again.”

With NUIG going on to win the Sigerson and Galway claiming promotion from Division Two before regaining the Connacht title, Mulkerrin has already missed out on a lot as a result of the injury.

And, with a clearer pathway to the All-Ireland final than at any time since they were last in one, starting with Sunday’s quarter-final against Armagh, he may be looking on at his Galway teammates for some time yet.

“When you feel you can contribute more on the pitch it is very difficult. It is always going to be that way, especially when you are accustomed to it, not even being togged or not even training with the lads.

“But then you see the lads, how they are training and pushing themselves every day and of course they get the reward with Connacht, so that in itself was great.”

Galway’s inside line of Robert Finnerty, Damien Comer and Shane Walsh contributed a whopping 1-14 of their Connacht final tally against Roscommon, 1-11 of it from play, and, although Galway’s Croke Park record has been dire in the last couple of decades, you’d have to think that the venue would suit that particular trio.

“I’ve got my fair trimmings in training as well, I can tell you that!” the full-back smiles. “But yeah, I suppose if you look back at the Connacht final alone, how well the three of them inter-linked together, it was great and they’ve a lot more in them as well in terms of working together and doing it a bit more but they’re really firing at the minute which is great to see as a Galwayman."

Despite it being 21 years since Galway reached an All-Ireland final, from their half of the draw, only Armagh (2003) have been to the decider more recently than them.

“It just shows how competitive it is now that the champions Tyrone have actually exited the Championship.

“It just shows how competitive and how level bearing the playing field is now and how teams have caught up so I suppose it’s there for a lot of teams there, it’s all to play for really,” Mulkerrin added.