Any speculation that DJ Carey was about to walk away from intercounty hurling has been firmly put to bed by the player himself, with the five-time All-Ireland winner announcing his commitment for yet another season.
After 17 years of service to the senior panel, and two months after celebrating his 34th birthday, Carey still believes he has something to offer Kilkenny hurling, and more specifically to help them win back their All-Ireland title.
"I am gearing up for another year," confirmed Carey, who hasn't travelled on the team holiday to Florida because of family commitments. "But I've spoken with Brian Cody and my intention is to continue to fight for a place on the team. I still have the hunger and love for the game, so I am not quitting."
Despite the disappointing nature of the All-Ireland defeat to Cork last September, when Kilkenny were chasing a third successive title for the first time in 70 years, Carey was quickly back to his old best, and almost single-handedly kept his club, Young Irelands, in the Kilkenny final against James Stephens by scoring 3-6.
And he believes he can do the same for Kilkenny: "My honest belief is that if Kilkenny had won the three-in-a-row there wouldn't be a fourth All-Ireland in the team. So if Kilkenny had won, I wouldn't be continuing, and I think it would have been the same with a few other players.
"But we feel we left something behind. We didn't perform in the second half of the All-Ireland, although it has to be admitted that Cork played well. Hurt pride will be a big incentive this year, but Kilkenny have the ability and players to bounce back and be contenders again."
Carey, however, has indicated that while he will resume training with the Kilkenny panel at the end of the month, he won't be targeting a starting place on the team until March because of business commitments at his new base in Dublin.
The rest of the Kilkenny team are due back from Florida at the weekend, and Cody is then expected to announce his panel for the start of the National League on February 20th.
The Kilkenny manager didn't drop any players before the holiday, but he did bring along five new faces - starting with James Stephens' scoring sensation Eoin Larkin, who was recently named Kilkenny's club hurler of the year, as well as Willie O'Dwyer (Mullinavat), John Tennyson (Carrickshock), Richie Power (Carrickshock) and Colin Herity (Dunnamaggin). It seems certain then that some established names will go.
Mayo football manager John Maughan, meanwhile, has said goalkeeper Peter Burke and midfielder Fergal Kelly won't be part his panel for the season. And there is also speculation that experienced defenders Gary Ruane and Fergal Costello, both of whom had stints as captain last year, are also considering their future.
Burke, Mayo's first-choice goalkeeper since 1997, has opted out for the foreseeable future to dedicate more time to his work as a self-employed carpenter. Kelly, who started last year's All-Ireland final against Kerry but was replaced by David Brady after only 20 minutes, has not been recalled to the panel.
There was better news for Dublin manager Paul Caffrey with word that Colin Moran, who missed most of last year's championship with a broken arm, is eyeing a comeback in the early rounds of the league.
Finally, Tipperary have named 10 players from last year's sole championship outing against Limerick for this Sunday's McGrath Cup meeting with Kerry. Peter King, Pa Morrissey, Niall Fitzgerald, Eamonn Hanrahan and John Shanahan come into the side at the expense of Bernard Hahessy, Seán Collum, Glen Burke, Liam England and Michael Webster.
TIPPERARY (SF v Kerry): B Enright; D O'Brien, N Curran, P King; P Morrissey, N Fitzgerald, R Costigan; E Hanrahan, K Mulryan; A Fitzgerald, F O'Callaghan, P Cahill; J Shanahan, D Browne, D O'Brien.
