Pressure mounts as Offaly suffer soul destroying defeat to Clare

OFFALY suffered an absolutely soul destroying, heartbreaking, gut wrenching defeat to Clare in the round 3 of Division 3 of the National Football League in O'Connor Park on Sunday.

Allianz National Football League Division 3 Round 3

Clare 2-10

Offaly 1-12

There was high drama as Peter Cunningham blasted a penalty over the bar with the last kick of the game, just over the five minutes of injury time but even apart from that Offaly will be wondering how they lost.

They were 0-10 to 0-3 up after 47 minutes, 1-10 to 0-4 up after 50 minutes and seemed to be in cruise control. Yet somehow they contrived to lose it as they ran out of legs in the closing twenty minutes.

They were two points behind three minutes into injury time and a get out of jail card was gifted to them in the 75^th minute when sub Jordan Quinn was fouled in a crowded Clare goalmouth. The unfortunate Cunningham went for power with his penalty and there were anguished groans from the home support as it sailed high over the bar.

It was a clamitious defeat for Offaly who should have coasted home with twenty minutes left, a really frustrating one as it was a game that just should not have been lost in a month of Sundays. Full credit to Clare for the way they battled back but they did not deserve to win this game and Offaly have only themselves to blame.

Fitness seemed to be an issue late on collectively they ran out of steam, Eoin Carroll and Ruari McNamee seemed to cramp up and other players visibly went into empty. It is a defeat that now places real pressure on Offaly who have now lost three games on the trot and are away to Down next Saturday, where they will be underdogs.

A win here would really have lifted the pressure and it was impossible to envisage anything other than a positive result well into the second half. They even had that chance to snatch it at the end but couldn't take it and manager Declan Kelly now has a big task on his hands to pick them up.

It was Offaly's best performance of the league as they moved better and with more pace when driving forward but they now find themselves immersed in the relegation battle. While Offaly played quite well for a lot of the game, the result is always the bottom line and it was a very bitter one.

There were a lot of very solid displays by Offaly with Cormac Egan excelling in a new role at wing back, John Furlong and Aidan Bracken impressing in a solid defence, Eoin Carroll and Peter Cunningham working hard at midfield and Ruari McNamee, Kevin McDermott and Jordan Hayes showing up well in attack. Dylan Hyland once again showed his value to the Offaly team as he worked his socks off on his return from suspension and he was a loss when he was replaced in the 56^th minute – at that stage, he did appear to be tiring a bit while he had picked up an early yellow card, had fouled a few times after that and may have been called ashore as a precaution.

Offaly had started off poorly with the wind on their back as Clare hit the ground running and got the first two points. After this, Offaly settled into it with Ruari McNamee opening their account in the fifth minute.

Clare led by 0-3 to 0-2 after 12 minutes – Shane Griffin's point should have been a goal. Offaly missed a great goal chance in the 13^th minute when Kevin McDermott did everything right as he manufactured space for himself but couldn't find the net from point blank range as Stephen Ryan made the save.

Nigel Dunne equalised with a 17^th minute free and Offaly were clearly the better side from here to the interval. They scored four points without reply for a 0-7 to 0-3 interval lead and even though, they still had a lot of work to do, it was set up for them to win,

They continued to play very steady football in the third quarter, controlling the game and doing almost nothing wrong. Nigel Dunne (two,one '45') and Jordan Hayes got points before Emmet McMahon opened Clare's account with a 49^th minute free. A punched goal by Anton Sullivan in the 50^th minute after Nigel Dunne's shot dropped into the danger area made it 1-10 to 0-3 and there was just no way Offaly should have lost it from here.

It all unravelled badly from here, however, and their performance in the last twenty minutes raises real questions. A McMahon free was followed by the break Clare needed with a 58^th minute penalty goal from Ciaran Downes after Einne O'Connor was fouled by John Furlong.

Clare subs made a huge difference late on. O'Connor won that penalty while Diarmuid O'Connor got 1-2 before picking up a black card deep in injury time and Cormac Murray also got a point. Even with the penalty goal, Offaly still had a very significant five point lead but the legs of some players went late on as they found it very hard to get their hands on the ball – Ian Duffy also found it difficult to find men from kickouts as Clare pressed up.

Their discipline also slipped when the pressure came on as their yellow card count crept up and they began to foul a bit carelessly.

Clare got three points to reduce it to two with six minutes left. Offaly knuckled down and a fine fisted breakaway point from Ruari McNamee gave them a three point lead in the 69^th minute. Disaster struck immediately, however, as Diarmuid O'Donnell broke through for a 70^th minute equalising goal.

Cormac Murray and Daniel Walsh gave Clare a two point lead by the 73^rd minute before Offaly got that dramatic last gasp lifeline but they spurned that as they endured a sickening loss.

MATCH ANALYSIS

MAN OF THE MATCH

Stephen Ryan (Clare): The Clare goalkeeper ended up as a central figure and was a big factor in their win. He made a great save from Kevin McDermott in the first half, though the Durrow man really should have found the net. He reached well over crossbar height to catch an Eoin Carroll point shot early on and caught another at crossbar height later on. In the second half, he moved out the field as a spare man as Clare chased the game and he did well in this role. He won one 50-50 ball off Eoin Carroll, caught a mark and linked well with colleagues – though he also had a bad wide. He didn't make the save from the penalty but he presented an imposing target and would certainly have had Cunningham doubting himself.

Had Offaly won, Cormac Egan was going to be my choice as man of the match. He was handed a new role at wing back and he flourished in this. He did lose Shane Griffin on a few occasions in the first half and was fortunate that his point wasn't a goal. However, once he tightened up, he kept Griffin out of it and he was replaced before half time. He tackled very well, won breaking ball and raced forward at pace, scoring a point and having a couple of assists. He showed up sufficiently well to suggest that he may have a home back here, though his pace will always create openings up front.

THE SCORERS

Clare: Diarmuid O'Donnell 1-2, Ciaran Downes 1-0 (penalty), Emmet McMahon 0-3 (3f), Daniel Walsh, Mark McInerney, Aaron Griffin, Shane Griffin and Cormac Murray 0-1 each.

Offaly: Nigel Dunne 0-4 (2f and 1 '45'), Anton Sullivan 1-0, Dylan Hyland 0-3 (2f), Ruari McNamee 0-2, Peter Cunningham (penalty), Jordan Hayes and Cormac Egan 0-1 each.

THE TEAMS

OFFALY: Ian Duffy (Walsh Island); Lee Pearson (Edenderry), David Dempsey (Ballycommon), Aidan Bracken (Ballycommon); Cormac Egan (Tullamore), John Furlong (Tullamore), Jack O'Brien (Durrow); Eoin Carroll (Cappincur), Peter Cunningham (Bracknagh); Kevin McDermott (Durrow), Ruari McNamee (Rhode), Jordan Hayes (Edenderry); Dylan Hyland (Raheen), Cian Farrell (Edenderry), Nigel Dunne (Shamrocks). Subs – Anton Sullivan (Rhode) for Farrell (29m), Cathal Flynn (Ferbane) for McDermott (52m), Keith O'Neill (Clonbullogue) for Hyland (56m), Rory Egan (Edenderry) for O'Bren (60m), Jordan Quinn (Kilcormac-Killoughey) for Carroll (67m),

CLARE: Stephen Ryan; Manus Doherty, Ronan Lanigan, Micheal Garry; Ikem Ugweru, Alan Sweeney, Daniel Walsh; Gavin Murray, Brian McNamara; Dermot Coughlan, Emmet McMahon, Ciaran Downes; Mark McInerney, Aaron Griffin, Shane Griffin. Subs – Cormac Murray for Shane Griffin (33m), Einne O'Connor for Garry (HT), Diarmuid O'Donnell for McInerney (44m), Tom McDonald for Gavin Murray (54m), James Curran for Coughlan (56m)

Referee – James Molloy (Galway).

REFEREE WATCH

James Molloy had a generally good game and was consistent. Clare corner back Micheal Garry was lucky not to get a second yellow card in the 27^th minute after catching Eoin Carroll with a careless elbow. He had just picked up one moments earlier for a trip and the referee looked to be going for a card until he realised he was already on one. Dylan Hyland also threaded on thin ice for a few minutes after his first half yellow, committing a couple of sloppy fouls.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

The only moment that counted here was Offaly's late penalty and Peter Cunningham's miss. The decision to give Cunningham the penalty will now be questioned as Anton Sullivan has taken them with a fair level of success in recent years. A penalty is a gift horse now and really should be scored but the truth is that Offaly should never have been in that position and should have been home and dry at that stage: the real reason they lost is coughing up a 1-10 to 0-4 lead in twenty traumatic minutes.

VENUE WATCH

The O'Connor Park pitch looked good, though it was soft in places and the fixture was well hosted.

WHAT'S NEXT

Offaly play Down in Newry next Saturday.

STATISTICS

Wides: Offaly – 2 (2 in first half); Clare – 9 (3 in first half).

Yellow cards: Offaly – 5 (Lee Pearson, John Furlong, Dylan Hyland, Kevin McDermott and Cathal Flynn); Clare – 2 (Daniel Walsh) and Emmet McMahon).

Black cards: Offaly – 0; Clare – 1 (Diarmuid O'Donnell).

Red cards: 0