Uisce Chaoin waiting game over Toye injury

By Michael McMullan

NAOMH Pádraig Uisce Chaoin are playing a waiting game over the fitness of Jonathan Toye ahead of Saturday’s All-Ireland Junior final.

The Donegal champions face Galway’s An Cheathrú Rua at Croke Park and manager Daniel McCauley rates Toye as “50-50” ahead of their historic showdown.

Toye, who has kicked 2-25 on their championship run, went off with a hamstring injury in their extra-time semi-final with Kilmurray.

Uisce Chaoin needed the goalkeeping heroics of goalkeeper Oran McCauley in the penalty shootout to help them book Saturday’s final spot.

“He’d be 50-50 at the minute,” McCauley said in an interview 10 days out from the game.

“I’d be hopeful of Jonny; Jonny’s fairly quick at recovering from muscle injuries.”

“I’m just going by his history. He picked up something similar last year against Na Rossa in the league.

“He had to come off in the first half and two weeks later he scored 2-3 against Moville in a league game.”

McCauley jokes how he’d love history to repeat itself. After their rollercoaster semi-final the squad headed into recovery mode.

Caolan Harkin went off injured in their win over Tara in London but was back on board for the Kilmurray game.

Rory Hirrell sat out the game in London before coming on to make an important impact in their semi-final, including nailing the final penalty of the shoot-out

In the case of Toye, they are just hoping that two weeks is enough to leave him available for selection. Dips in the sea and compression treatments have been his best friends.

“He tweaked it about five minutes previous to going off, “McCauley said.

“Jonny being Jonny, he never said anything to anybody. He’s that kind of character.

“He deserves Croke Park more than anyone because, through the bad times, Jonny Toye was the first man at training and his influence within the team is something unreal.

“We would be hopeful over him and Rory (Hirrell). I didn’t want to play him (Hirrell) on Sunday (against Kilmurray) but we had to get him on the pitch.”

An Cheathrú Rua stand in their way of finishing their season on the steps of the Hogan Stand.

Uisce Chaoin, founded in 1989, hadn’t won a championship until this year and have backed it up with Ulster silverware and a ticket to Croke Park.

“They’re very good from the half back line, two wing-backs are very powerful,” McCauley said of his assessment from watching the Galway side.

“Éanna Mac Cormaic, he might have played for Galway 20s or 21s at the time, he’s small forward, he’s lightening pace,” he said.

“Then their big midfielder (Micheál Ó Briain) caught one over the crossbar in the last kick of the game against the Offaly side in the semi-final. He is some size of a man.

“It’s like everything else now, they’re not going to be a bad team in the All-Ireland Final

“We just have to be mindful of the forward line because they’ve a lot of pace.”

He also hopes the wide-open spaces of Croke Park will suit them if Toye is fit to link in with the runs of Hirrell and Caolan McColgan.

“You kind of have to try and enjoy it,” McCauley said of the build-up.

“It’s a case of just keeping the boys settled and not to get overawed by the occasion.

“I’ve told them all year, on this journey we’ve been on, every pitch is the same. It’s green grass, it’s white lines and doesn’t matter where it’s at.

“Once we cross that white line, it’s a game of football. We’ll go out and enjoy it. It has worked so far, so we’re hoping we get one more step.”

Check out Thursday’s Gaelic Life for a full interview with Daniel on the team’s journey to Croke Park.

We have video interviews on our Facebook page from the club’s recent Up for the Match event.