Football

Armagh defensive duo hoping to return for Ulster Championship clash with Antrim

Ryan Kennedy damaged ankle ligaments in the first half of the Armagh versus Tyrone Division One clash. Picture Margaret McLaughlin.
Ryan Kennedy damaged ankle ligaments in the first half of the Armagh versus Tyrone Division One clash. Picture Margaret McLaughlin. Ryan Kennedy damaged ankle ligaments in the first half of the Armagh versus Tyrone Division One clash. Picture Margaret McLaughlin.

DEFENDERS Ryan Kennedy and Aidan Forker are expected to be fit in time for Armagh’s Ulster Championship opener against Antrim but the pair will miss this weekend’s Division One relegation play-off against Roscommon as they recover from ankle injuries.

Ballymacnab clubman Kennedy and Maghery stalwart Forker both hobbled off in the first half of Armagh’s Division One North clash with Tyrone at the Athletic Grounds and missed the round three thriller with Donegal that saw the Orchardmen just miss out on a place in the League semi-finals.

The nail-biting draw meant that Armagh finished third in the table and were faced with a relegation play-off against Roscommon at the Athletic Grounds on Sunday.

Initially, there were concerns that Kennedy could be ruled out for the remainder of the season but the ligament damage to his ankle turned out to be less severe than was first feared and, like Forker, he is hopeful of returning to action against Enda McGinley’s in-form Saffrons.

Crossmaglen defender James Morgan also hobbled off during the round two clash with the Red Hands but recovered sufficiently to take the field against Donegal. However, Forkhill clubman Paddy Burns, another injury victim against Tyrone, hasn’t featured since.

The Armagh panel has been hammered by injuries so far in this campaign. Full-forward Ethan Rafferty ruptured his cruciate ligament in a pre-season challenge match and also missing for Armagh so far is experienced half-back Mark Shields who had surgery on a damaged hamstring last month.

The Whitecross clubman hasn’t been ruled out of the Ulster Championship but there is no prospect of Rafferty seeing any action. The towering Grange star’s entire 2021 season was scuppered in an innocuous incident during Armagh’s first pre-season friendly and, after rupturing a cruciate ligament, Rafferty won’t kick a ball this year.

He had an operation on the injury last Tuesday which was successful but now faces nine months on the sidelines including many hours of rehab and fitness work before he can return to playing football.

“There wasn’t much to it,” he explained when asked how the injury had occurred.

“I went to turn and my knee buckled underneath me.”

Initially he wanted to “try to run it off” but Armagh physio Shea McAleer stepped in and made the call for Rafferty to come off the pitch. Then the Armagh County Board acted quickly: Rafferty’s knee was scanned two days later, he knew the full extent of his injury within a week and within a month he’d had the surgery.

Now he has to concentrate on recovering and, unfortunately for him, he’s no stranger to that - this latest setback has come after he’d come through hip and shoulder injuries over the past three years.

“They say things come in threes, so hopefully this is the end of it,” said Rafferty.

“We’ve seen a few boys pull hamstrings this year but my injury was just an accident – you can twist your knee or twist your ankle at any time. We hadn’t done any collective training but I had done a good bit on my own and I was coming in (for pre-season training) relatively fit compared to previous seasons and I was feeling good.

“So I can’t put it down to anything really, except bad luck – if I didn’t have bad luck, I’d have no luck at all.”

The recovery period for a cruciate operation is nine months and Rafferty hopes to be back on the pitch by March next year meaning he could be available for a portion of Armagh’s 2022 National League campaign.