WHEN YOUR COUNTY wins their first provincial championship game since 2007, it’s easy to get carried away in the celebrations afterwards.
And that’s what unfolded when Limerick got the better of Tipperary in last month’s Munster senior hurling semi-final at the Gaelic Grounds.
A heroic second-half performance saw Limerick overcome their opponents by 1-18 to 1-15 and the pitch was invaded by delirious home fans after the match.
Corner-back Stephen Walsh was one of the Limerick players greeted by the fans in the ensuing celebrations but picking up a freak eye injury was not something the 27 year-old had bargained for.
“It was crazy! I remember falling to my knees but within seconds I was surrounded by people. We were on the field for about three-quarters of an hour afterwards but in the midst of it all, a supporter ended up sticking their finger in my eye!
“I didn’t notice it at the time but there was a photo in the Limerick Leader that week, on the Thursday, and you can clearly see someone with their finger in my eye.
“I got an ulcer in my eye because of it. I wear contacts, put them in, deprived the eye of oxygen which caused an ulcer on the scratch.
“I didn’t think anything of it til the Monday, woke up and the eye was sore. I tried to put in the contacts but no, it wasn’t having any of it.
“I put off doing anything about it but by Wednesday it was unbearable and they sent me to CUH. They told me ‘No contact lenses for four to six weeks’ and I was thinking, ‘Jesus, this is the last thing I need!’.
“I went to my own ophthalmic consultant in Cork and at that stage it was starting to heal up but I actually had to play two championship games with the club with one eye – it was a nightmare.
“Two weeks without the lenses but eventually I was able to use them again. It’s fine now again thank God but it was a funny one looking back on it, how people can get carried away in the heat of the moment.”
Limerick’s Stephen Walsh
INPHO/James Crombie
