Kearns out of League after heart surgery

MONAGHAN midfielder Niall Kearns will not feature in this year’s Allianz Football League after it was revealed yesterday that he is recuperating from a heart operation. Kearns, who was short-listed for an All-Star after a sensational rookie season, underwent cardiac surgery back in October, but the operation was kept under wraps. Monaghan manager Malachy O’Rourke confirmed yesterday that the Sean McDermott’s clubman would be ruled out for the rest of this year’s League and possibly even longer. ‘Niall’s had a heart operation so he won’t be seen until at least the end of the League campaign,’ confirmed O’Rourke. ‘He has a fair recovery period ahead of him. He had a problem with his heart last year. ‘Apparently it’s a problem he has

had since he was a young lad and it flared up a bit during the Championship season. ‘It was decided this was the time to get something done to hopefully prolong his career. It was a fairly serious operation so he will need a fair bit of time to get himself back ready again,’ revealed O’Rourke. Kearns was an unknown prior to last season but after breaking into the team at the start of the League, he started in every League and Championship game as Monaghan reached the All-Ireland semi-final for the first time in 30 years. Despite his rookie status, he saw more game-time than any other outfield player for Monaghan last season, while his ballwinning ability and his capacity to sting for scores from deep saw him receive an All-Star nomination as one of the top six midfielders in the country. Meanwhile, RTÉ will broadcast four live Allianz League games on Saturday nights this spring. The GAA announced yesterday that it had struck a deal which will be in place for the next three years between RTÉ and eir Sport, which will allow the national broadcaster to show four games to be shown simultaneously by the two broadcasters. eir Sport retain the exclusive rights to Saturday night League fixtures, and plan to show two games on each of those evenings.