IN these bleak and barren times on the football front, divining any morsels of positivity is no easy task – but Padraig Hampsey has three crumbs of comfort for Tyrone fans as a result of the current hiatus.

With Croke Park confirming last week that there will be no inter-county Senior Championship action likely until July at the earliest, the Red Hands much-anticipated Ulster first round blockbuster with Donegal – scheduled for may 17 in Ballybofey – will not now proceed.

The continuing uncertainty over the spread of the coronavirus has cast major doubt over the remainder of the season, creating a huge fixture dilemma for the GAA’s top brass.

However, what the protracted delay has done is provide additional recuperation time for some of Tyrone’s leading lights, in particular captain Mattie Donnelly (torn hamstring) and last year’s top scorer Cathal McShane (ankle).

Both have faced lengthy periods on the sidelines recovering from their respective operations, while Hampsey himself (groin) only recently returned to the fray from injury after going under the knife.

The teak-tough Coalisland defender is optimistic that his county team-mates will be back in the thick of it later in the season when hopefully a semblance of normality returns to our lives.

“There’s always positives to take out of it. Mattie and Cathal now have plenty of time to get their rehab done and recover better.

“It gives them a good window to recover and heal properly, and knowing those two boys, with their work ethic, they’ll push it until they get it right.”

Hampsey has featured in Tyrone’s last two league outings, against Galway and Dublin, after undergoing surgery last November in London to repair his bilateral groin.

Despite the distressing backdrop to the cessation of football activity, he has been able to work on his fitness out of the limelight to get up to full pelt.

“It gives me a nice window as well. I felt I was good to go, but now in can be double certain that I am a 100 percent fit. But make no mistake, it’s been tough with no football, a different routine.”

Hampsey is a full-time fitness instructor, running his own personal trainer business – PHitness – from premises in Coalisland.

Catering for one-to ones and small groups, he explained why he had ventured into this line of work.

“I have been doing it for three years – two years in the Fianna club, now in my own premises.

“I had a good client base built up, and that’s’ why I took the jump to go out on my own.”

However, needless to say his business, like thousands of others across the country, has suffered a dramatic downturn in the last few weeks due to the covid-19 pandemic.

“I wanted to have my own spot, and my own space, and it was going well, with good numbers and steady sessions, but now I’m doing nothing, not even the one-to-ones.

“I’m using the gym myself, along with the two brothers, Eoin and Brian. I’m doing my own running blocks as well from the programme (Tyrone S&C coach) Jonny Davis sent us.

“So I’m doing about four gym sessions along with four running blocks per week, still training as hard as I was, maybe even a bit harder.

“I’m lucky that I have my own gym equipment. Some of the other lads maybe got equipment off their clubs or even bought their own. They’re all training away and doing the right stuff.”

Hampsey revealed that he is considering availing of social media in this period of self-isolation to pass on his fitness expertise and advice to others.

“I haven’t set up any online stuff yet, but it’s something I’m working on. I have been giving my own clients free programmes that they can do on their own, the ones that had been coming to me as regulars.

“I find it hard to charge people for sessions when you’re not there to put them through their paces. It will work for some of them, but for others they might need that bit of an extra push in the gym.”

And like thousands of self-employed workers, Padraig is counting the days until restrictions are relaxed, though cautious that it can’t be done until the medical experts give it the green light.

“As soon as I get the go-ahead I’ll get straight back into it, but not until then. No clients will be through the door until it’s one hundred per cent safe and official, until the authorities say it’s good to go.”

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