McIver wishes Kilkenny a speedy recovery
March 13, 2014
Derry manager Brian McIver. INPHO
Speaking ahead of their Allianz FL Division 1 clash on Sunday, Derry boss Brian McIver has sent the Oak Leaf County's best wishes to injured Dublin star Ciaran Kilkenny.
"Our best wishes go to Ciarán Kilkenny," McIver said to the Herald. "It's a real, real problem for players. It seems to be becoming more and more the norm. We're just praying that after last year, that's the end of it. We don't require any more cruciate injuries for another twenty years.
"Even in the last 10 years, it's obvious that the medical people have made great strides in how to handle that particular injury. Unfortunately, they've had plenty of practice at it. But there is no simple way back from a cruciate injury. You simply have to do the rehab.
"The key is as Dublin are doing, not rushing players back, bringing them back by degrees.
"Dublin still have a number of their starting fifteen from last year that are making their way back. They won last year playing really good flowing football and they have started this season doing the same.
"We know ourselves, you have Cork one Sunday and Dublin the next Sunday; two massive games in the space of a week. But sure, it's a great level of football to be playing at."
McIver and Derry will be hoping to bounce back from last Sunday's defeat to league leaders Cork.
"In the second half, we played some really good football and we were probably very, very unlucky not to come out with something out of it in the end.
"I thought we had a very good penalty claim. We had a good goal disallowed. I thought Cork got a very, very soft free for the last Colm O'Neill point. But whenever you fall about 11 points behind, there's no point in looking at referees. You have to look at your own performance."
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