It is believed Fitzgerald, who wears a heart monitor during games, was experiencing complaints on Saturday and chose not to attend a training game on Sunday.

The Sixmilebridge man previously had two stents inserted in 2009 due to a blocked artery. At the time, he was told by his surgeon that he was in “heart attack territory” having been diagnosed with a 95% blockage.

In the event Fitzgerald is not able to take to the sideline against Galway in Thurles, selectors Dónal Óg Cusack and Louis Mulqueen are in line to take over team duties.

In April 2013, Brian Cody had pre-planned heart surgery, which ruled him out of Kilkenny’s Division 1 semi-final and final against Galway and Tipperary respectively.

Last week, Fitzgerald spoke about how he was able to regulate his heart during matches.

“I will fight tooth and nail if I think a decision is wrong. I will fight for it and I will fight for the lads but I will be straight back down.

“Like, I’ve often checked my heart-rate in games and, trust me, I won’t allow it to be up for a long period of time to be calm and be certain of what you’re looking at.

“It’s funny enough, I come back down quick enough. I don’t know what it is. If you really watch the sideline, you’d often see myself and Cusack having the laugh. We could have been fighting half a minute beforehand and the next thing we would be back on the thing again.

“I suppose it’s years of competing and stuff.”

This story first appeared in the Irish Examiner