Cuala hurler Sean Moran is confident that team-mate Con O'Callaghan will be available to the Dublin champions later this year, but avoided setting out a timeline for a return for the 2019 Footballer of the Year nominee.

O'Callaghan was forced off in the fourth minute of the county decider after opening the scoring with a well-taken goal, with St Brigid’s goalkeeper Alan Nolan escaping any punishment for his challenge, which Cuala boss Willie Maher later described as a "terrible tackle".

The Dalkey outfit, who triumphed on the national stage in 2017 and 2018, went on to inflict a 1-18 to 1-14 victory over St Brigid’s at Parnell Park, with St Mullin’s of Carlow next up in provincial competition for the side which have claimed four of the last five hurling titles in the capital.

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That encounter is less than two weeks away, with O’Callaghan almost certain to miss out, but Moran is optimistic his colleague will return to the fray in 2019.  

"Con will be okay," the 26-year-old told RTÉ Sport.

"He will be back to himself in a few weeks. He suffered a bit of a dead leg.

"I’ve not really been speaking to him, but no doubt we’ll see him again later on in the year."

Cuala’s recent hurling dominance in the capital followed a 19-year wait for a county title. What’s seldom may be wonderful, but what is now frequent hasn’t been underappreciated by the centre-back.

"It’s great," he enthused.  

"We went a long time without any county titles, so we really enjoy them when they come around.

"It’s been a great few years. We’ve been very fortunate with this team that we’ve had, so we just enjoy the success."

Looking ahead to the clash with the Carlow champions and the sense of expectation that now surrounds Cuala, Moran added: "They’ll be another huge challenge for us in two weeks’ time.

"We’ll come down off our celebrations after the county title and regroup, refocus and look forward to the next challenge ahead of us.

"We know what we are capable of when we play well, having been there and having won two All-Irelands.

"It’s a high bar we’re setting for ourselves, but we’ll take each game at a time and we know where we ultimately want to be."  

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