Mike Casey loving Limerick return after 'tough 19 months'

Limerick's hurlers have proven time and again how resilient they are but the battles that full-back Mike Casey has faced in the past three years are a different proposition entirely.

Casey experienced a cruciate ligament injury in a challenge game in 2020 and sat out that year's championship.

Last summer, he got back playing with Na Piarsaigh but damaged his cartilage and had to undergo more surgery. That was 2021 done for.

In December, he went back under the knife as the cartilage issue hadn't been rectified.

In 2022, thankfully, there was light at the end of the tunnel.

Casey returned to the Limerick defence at the tail end of this year's Allianz Hurling League, started the championship opener against Cork, and has been flying it since.

"It was an extremely tough period, going through lockdown as well, so it was a tough 19 months," the 26-year-old says. "My last game was Kilkenny in 2019 before this year, so that was a long lay-off.

"It was tough but looking on and seeing how well the boys were doing, what they were achieving, made it that bit easier.

"In the gym there was no skipping a set or skipping a rep, when you were back you wanted to contribute to the group, but to do that you had to be at the highest level because of what the boys were doing on the field, what they were achieving.

"So unless you were at peak fitness and ready to go you weren't going to get back in."

But there were dark moments and he thanks his girlfriend, Jessica, for helping him through that time. His teammates were always there for him too.

"A lot of the lads have been through a lot of things, knee surgeries and things like that. I never left the group. I was asked to come in and help with stats and that so I was part of everything that was going on,