INJURED Crossmaglen defender James Morgan will not feature for Armagh this season.
Morgan missed the Orchardmen’s Division Three campaign while travelling in Australia but he was in the crowd at Brewster Park, Enniskillen to witness his county’s disappointing seven-point loss to Rory Gallagher’s Fermanagh a fortnight ago.
There had been speculation that the tenacious man-marker would return to the fold for the meeting with Westmeath in Mullingar on June 9, but The Irish News has learned that Morgan is recovering from a knee injury and will not feature for the Orchardmen this summer.
However, Morgan’s Crossmaglen team-mate Paul Hughes could be available for the Westmeath encounter.
With Morgan injured and Jamie Clarke and Oisin O’Neill unavailable, Hughes is the only member of Armagh’s most successful club side currently on the county’s senior panel.
Hughes has had an injury-disrupted season. The Rangers defender played in Armagh’s Division Three opener against Sligo, but missed the games against Westmeath and Longford before returning against Offaly.
He started the fifth round Ulster derby against Derry but limped off with ankle ligament damage and that injury ruled him out of the Championship clash with Fermanagh, breaking a 22-year run of Crossmaglen players featuring in Armagh Championship games.
