THE WATERFORD HURLERS have suffered a setback with defender Stephen Daniels ruled out for the rest of the season after shattering his patella bone in a challenge match last Friday night.
Daniels suffered the serious knee injury in the early stages of the Deise outfit’s clash with Offaly in a game that was played in Tipperary Town.
The young defender, who made his senior championship debut last summer for Waterford against Clare, sustained a blow to the knee and is set to undergo an operation tomorrow morning at Whitfield Clinic from sports injury specialist Tadgh O’Sullivan.
His absence is a setback for manager Michael Ryan who selected Daniels to start in all five of Waterford’s Allianz Division 1A hurling league games this spring.
Daniels has enjoyed major success at club level with De La Salle in winning three Waterford senior hurling medals and two Munster senior hurling medals in recent years while he also featured for Cork IT in the 2012 Fitzgibbon Cup final.
A recognised corner-back at senior inter-county level, Daniels first advertised his talents on the second-level stage when he won two Dr Harty Cup and Croke Cup medals while lining out at left half-back for De La Salle.
De La Salle’s Stephen Daniels celebrates with his mother Jackie after winning the 2010 Munster club final.
Pic: INPHO/Cathal Noonan
Several inter-county stars like Cork footballer Ciaran Sheehan, Waterford hurler Jake Dillon, Kilkenny hurler Eoin Murphy and Cork hurler Lorcan McLoughlin tweeted support to Daniels ahead of his operation.
