A crowd of 8,000 turned up at Nowlan Park last night to see Henry Shefflin take a full part in Kilkenny training.

The sensational development has raised hopes that the Ballyhale Shamrocks sharpshooter will, after all, be able to play in Sunday week's All-Ireland final against Tipperary. Shefflin looked certain to miss the final after rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during the first half of the All-Ireland semi-final earlier this month.

But following intensive treatment with renowned physio Ger Hartman in Limerick, he appears to have made a miraculous recovery and is on course to play a part in Kilkenny's bid for an historic five-in-a-row.

Shefflin showed no ill-effects while appearing in an internal practice match and scored 0-3. In a further boost for the Cats, John Tennyson, who is also suffering from a knee ligament injury, trained as well, as did Tommy Walsh, who is recovering from a shoulder injury.

However, there was some concern as centre back Brian Hogan, who injured his shoulder against Cork, picked up a hand injury and could now be a doubt for the All-Ireland final. Tweet

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