McGrath back for another year

Ken McGrath

It is great news that Ken McGrath has put his injury and illness nightmare of the last two years behind him and is ready to give it another lash in 2011 to finally bring the Liam McCarthy Cup across the Suir. Along with his Mount Sion team-mate, Tony Browne, McGrath can lend considerable experience to a Waterford panel which is likely to be flooded with members of the highly promising underage teams of the last two seasons.

In his hey-day, McGrath was one of the most elegant and stylish hurlers in the game and was one of the last players to have mastered the ancient art of overhead striking. Whether it was at centre-back or centre-forward, McGrath had the ability to dominate games. Who can ever forget his masterful performance at centre-forward in the 2002 Munster final or the legendary ‘catch’ at the death in the 2004 Munster final.

For the past two years, McGrath has struggled with injury and illness but there were signs in last year’s All-Ireland semi-final against Tipperary that McGrath was approaching something like his best form.

In an article which appeared in today’s Irish Independent, McGrath stated that he was glad that 2010 was over from a hurling point of view and that he would be rejoining the Waterford panel for training next Tuesday night.

The dogs in the street could see that McGrath had lost a lot of weight in 2009 and he looked a shadow of his former self when lining out against Limerick in a best-forgotten Munster championship clash. For the first time, McGrath spoke out about the weight-loss that has blighted him over the last two years, putting it down to a condition called sarcoidosis which affects the lungs. Now for the first time, it all makes sense!

McGrath also went on to explain that although his knees are never going to be 100%, they are currently as good as they have been in a long time and that he is looking forward to getting back into the swing of things.

As well as being excellent news for all Waterford supporters, this must also be music to the ears of Waterford manager, Davy Fitzgerald. There can be no doubt that McGrath will be recognised as one of the best players to ever pull on the famous white jersey and he would be an addition to any squad. Whether he can ever make it back to anything like his best remains to be seen but even an 80% Ken McGrath would be a lot better than some other players at full pelt.

The next decision for Davy Fitz may well be what position to deploy McGrath in. Sentimentalists may well like to see him at centre-back but it would be a massive ask for him to slot straight back in to such a pivotal position after a two year absence from the position and continue on as if he had never been away.

Others may well like to see him at the edge of the square where he could present a real goal-threat with his aerial ability and eye for goal. However, I feel that where Waterford need McGrath most is in his old stomping ground on the 40. Since McGrath went back to centre-back, we haven’t really had a reliable, scoring centre-forward who can also win the ‘dirty’ ball and bring others into the game. Remember, for a time, it was genuinely believed in many quarters that McGrath was developing into one of the finest centre-forwards to grace the ancient game.

There may be a legitimate argument for playing McGrath at full-forward but there is also the danger that he would be out of the game for long periods in there. McGrath is the type of player that needs to be where the action is. That is when he is at his best, out where the hurleys are flying, winning possession, making space and scoring points.

Whether McGrath is able to nail down a regular starting spot on the team remains to be seen but one thing is for certain, he sure won’t go down without a massive fight. It would have been very easy for him to walk away after last year’s All-Ireland semi-final with his head held high after an impressive cameo but that is not the type of individual he is. Hurling and Waterford hurling in particular are things that McGrath holds dear. It is often said that it is not about the size of the man in the fight but the size of the fight in the man that is most important but in McGrath, Waterford have a big man full to the brim of those fighting qualities.