Cullinane flying again after injury nightmare

Date Published: {J}

STEPHEN GLENNON

IF there is one Galway hurler who has more reason than any other to relish Sunday’s All-Ireland quarter-final clash against Waterford at Semple Stadium, Thurles, it is Craughwell defender, Adrian Cullinane.

Having spent five years in Waterford IT, where he studied Business & Sport, Cullinane soldiered alongside such Deise stalwarts as Michael ‘Brick’ Walsh and Kevin Moran, winning no less than three Fitzgibbon Cup medals with WIT in this time.

Indeed, those were heady days for the Craughwell man, days when friendships and memories were moulded in succinct strokes.

Consequently, it is with a heightened sense of anticipation he approaches Sunday’s contest . . . more so given he missed the two counties’ last championship meeting through injury in 2009.

On that occasion, Cullinane, who had suffered a devastating cruciate injury against Clare in the qualifiers, could only watch on in despair as Waterford netted in the closing minutes to snatch a dramatic 1-16 to 0-18 victory. How he would have loved to have had an opportunity to influence the outcome! To have a crack at his old college team-mates!

“We kind of left it behind us, I thought, that day,” sighs the Galway defender. “That year, I got injured and then the following game against Cork, Kav [Shane Kavanagh] got injured. So, things had begun to snowball. When you are missing a hurler like Kav, it disrupts the whole lot.

“It was very disappointing, though, to miss that game. I remember coming off the field against Clare [in the qualifiers] and knowing the year was over. A week or so later, when things had settled down, I told Mac (John McIntyre), there was no point in me hanging around but the management asked me would I stay on and I did.

“Hardy (John Hardiman) had it on record that I hadn’t missed a training session or challenge that year, never mind a competitive game. I had played everything up to the Clare game. So, the day of the Waterford game, I didn’t want to get out of the bed, to be honest. It was so disheartening to be on crutches and to be down on the sideline just looking at it. The way that game finished, you could just see it happening. That day was something out of a horror film really.”

In the aftermath of that defeat, Cullinane had the necessary operation to address his injury problems, noting the advice he received from former WIT doctor and Orthopaedic specialist Tadhg O’Sullivan, Director of the Whitfield Sports Clinic, was critical in his recovery.

“It was a long road back,” admits the 28-year-old. “Tadhg O’Sullivan was very good – I have to say that about him – but the road back was something torturous. I wouldn’t fancy it again. I don’t know how Henry Shefflin did it two years running. It is definitely tough going. They said it would be six to eight months recovery, but realistically you are looking at the guts of a year.”

In any event, Cullinane spent those long winter nights rehabilitating, returning to club and county action in the spring of 2010. “The club were very good to me as well. I started off with just 10 minutes up at corner forward in every challenge game and slowly started to work my way back to full fitness.

“When I got back hurling, I thought I was in decent enough shape but the day we played Kilkenny in the Leinster final, I started at midfield and within 20 minutes I knew I was nowhere near the pitch of the game. Championship games like that though will always bring you on. It was not until the day we (Craughwell) played Loughrea in our final group game, that the knee finally settled down. That was the day when things went well for me and I haven’t looked back since.”

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.