2013 Clare All-Star hurler sidelined with a most unusual medical issue

We hope to see this great hurler back very soon.

Davy Fitzgerald’s hurling squad must be thinking they broke a load of mirrors or stepped under ladders with their run of back luck this season. The Clare hurling boss has been without a number of key players so far in 2016 due to injury and unfortunate incidents such as Tony Kelly and Shane O'Donnell. However, concussion, ankle problems, and knee  problems didn't sound like anything compared to the punctured lung suffered by Oisin O'Brien. He is unlikely to be fit for the banner's Munster senior hurling clash with Waterford after the scary incident that left him needing hospital treatment in Austria and 2013 All-Star Conor Ryan is also out of the game. The Cratloe hurler has been missing for Clare's squad for a number of weeks now with what must be one of the oddest injury issues, and frustrating, we've ever heard. Speaking to the Irish Independent, Davy Fitzgerald confirmed that Ryan is suffering from a 'hormone disorder’ and it has taken some weeks for the Clare medical team to discover and diagnose his issue.

"Conor had a hormonal disorder, it took us a while to put our finger on it but we got there. So that's a number of weeks. To us he's a massive player. "He got an All-Star in 2013. His strength, he would be our most dedicated player. If you ask anyone on this team who trains the hardest, you'd have a list of four or five who are incredible. He'd be definitely up there on that. It wasn't from over-training; it's just something that happened."

Normally, hormone imbalances in men are related to either a lack of testosterone or a problem in regards to an under active, or overactive, thyroid gland. While no details of Ryan's exact condition have been released, we can only hope to see him back to the form that earned him an All-Star for Clare in 2013, and back to his best in a saffron and blue jersey shortly.