Kilkenny left reeling as heroic Offaly dig deep to return to provincial decider

A Leinster U-20 Hurling Championship semi-final packed to the gills with turns and twists, excitement and drama, ended with Offaly staying on course to retain their provincial crown with a win by the slenderest of margins in a throbbing O'Connor Park on Wednesday evening.

Leinster U20 Hurling Championship semi-final

Offaly 2-17

Kilkennny 2-16

In front of an estimated crowd of over 8,000 people, Offaly lived on their wits, flirted with danger but stared it all down, displaying tremendous character as they answered the most testing of questions.

Lady luck smiled on them as Kilkenny had a second half penalty saved by outstanding goalkeeper Liam Hoare and also saw a rocket rebound off the crossbar but Offaly dug deep, showed tremendous resolve and the ability to pluck off scores.

It was a thrilling, against the odds win as Offaly survived a ferocious Kilkenny onslaught each side of half time, conceding eight points on the trot. It looked very blue for Offaly as Kilkenny overturned a 1-9 to 0-7 deficit after 26 minutes into a 0-15 to 1-9 lead by 37. It looked like they had built up an unstoppable head of steam but somehow, almost amazingly, Offaly managed to keep their composure and get back on top.

They went on their own spree of 1-5 without reply to turn it all on its head and they then held on for dear life as Kilkenny rallied late on.

The game was everything we expected and much more. We knew that Offaly supporters would come out in their thousands and they did, vastly outnumbering Kilkenny in the wildly excited crowd, a crescendo of noise greeting every home score, compared to the visitors.

PLAYER RATINGS: How the Offaly U20 hurlers fared in big win over Kilkenny

It was an extraordinary situation before the game started as Offaly were in the very unique position of expecting to beat Kilkenny. That optimism and confidence proved well founded but this was a game that could very easily have went wrong. They got the breaks on the evening but as manager Leo O'Connor said afterwards, these were something this group of players have not always got over the last three years and they deserved them on this occasion.

Kilkenny had beaten Offaly well in the corresponding fixture at minor level three years ago but Offaly are a different animal now, coming on in leaps and bounds in the past two years - many of these players won Leinster minor and U-20 medals in the past two years and competed in All-Ireland finals in both codes, losing out traumatically to an injury time Tipperary goal in the 2022 minor one.

The players have created a welter of excitement among supporters, a unique bond developing and Kilkenny knew they were in for one mighty battle before the ball was thrown in – Kilkenny had shot themselves in the foot by ruling out one of their star players Killian Doyle by playing him in their senior draw with Carlow last weekend.

It was a real frantic, helter skelter game with a huge level of intensity and physicality. With a fantastic level of skill thrown into the mix, it made for fantastic viewing while it was all very human with mistakes made, chances missed.

It was one of those rare games where you almost couldn't breathe and Offaly now have a short turnaround before they play Dublin in the Leinster final next Wednesday.

It was a huge win for Offaly, a first knockout win over Kilkenny since U21 in 2007 and a real character building one. Defensive heroics and tremendous midfield shifts by Colin Spain and Cathal King laid the foundations while the attack had to show terrific character on a day when not everything flowed for them against a teak tough, physical Kilkenny defence who also operated a sweeper for extended periods.

Goalkeeper Liam Hoare and Brecon Kavanagh were absolutely brilliant in defence while up front, Shane Rigney emerged as the main man, scoring 2-3 from play. Adam Screeney was tightly marked and there were times when the ball didn't stick as usual but in the face of such adversity, he showed his quality. He was flawless from his frees, kept doing the right thing. Once again, his work rate was incredible, winning two crucial first half frees through this while his one point from play in the 59^th minute was a truly inspirational one. Credit also to Dan Bourke who was in and out of the game but did some wonderful things while every player worked himself into the ground.

It is difficult to know where to start so lets go from the beginning. From the throw in, we knew Offaly would be competitive and had a chance. Once again they showed up, the work rate was there in spades and they were performing. It was incredibly tight as both teams tore into each other. It was 0-2 each after four minutes, 0-4 to 0-3 after 10 minutes, 0-6 to 0-4 in Offaly's favour after 16. A Harry Shine free and Marty Murphy point from play levelled it up at 0-6 each after 20 minutes.

A stunning Shane Rigney goal in the 22^nd minute brought the Offaly crowd to their feet, as he brilliantly caught a long Liam Hoare puckout, raced into space and drove the ball to the net. In an era when short puckouts and finding your man is everything, it showed that direct long 50-50 balls can also reap a big reward. Rigney's second goal ten minutes into the second half also came out of the route one approach – a long Hoare puckout, Dan Bourke emerging with the ball, a sensational pass forward to Rigney and a quite magnificent finish.

Harry Shine replied for Kilkenny but three in a row from two Adam Screeney frees and a lovely score from the in-form Donal Shirley put Offaly 1-9 to 0-7 ahead after 26 minutes. Screeney's frees showed all why this Offaly team is so good – for the first one him and Barry Egan hunted down Jeff Neary as he came out with the ball, forcing him to overcarry and for the second one, Adam Screeney chased Bill Hughes, resulting in a turnover and free.

Offaly were in a very good position but Kilkenny found a great response, scoring four points without reply to trail by just a point, 1-9 to 0-11 at the break.

Adam Screeney overplayed with a point chance in that period and you feared the worse as Offaly's error count increased on the resumption and Kilkenny got a second four in a row, eight in all, to lead by 0-15 to 1-9 after 37 minutes. Offaly couldn't get the score they were crying out for as Donal Shirley underhit a point chance and Dan Bourke and Conor Doyle also missed chances.

A Kilkenny goal would probably have killed Offaly off in this period and they had Liam Hoare to thank for keeping them in it. He made a fantastic save to deny Harry Shine in the 34^th minute and a minute later, he did very well to keep out a Gearoid Dunne snap shot.

Offaly finally ended their drought with an Adam Screeney free in the 38^th minute but Shine cancelled that out a minute later. Those scores settled Offaly and in the 40^th minute, they got the game's most important score. Dan Bourke made a great break from midfield, delivered in a fantasic pass to Shane Rigney and the St Rynagh's man blasted home a second goal of the highest quality. Screeney got four frees and Rigney gpot another quality score from play as Offaly scored 1-5 without reply to take a stunning 2-15 to 0-16 lead after 55 minutes. Kilkenny went from the 39^th to 57^th minutes without a score and they were shell shocked.

Offaly's intensity and desire was a factor in their famine but it was also self inflicted as they missed a handful of chances. The most glaring was a 44^th minute penalty, awarded for a foul on Shine by Ruari Kelly but Liam Hoare made an excellent save from Gearoid Dunne, their usual penalty taker. Shine underhit the '65', Dunne dropped an easy chance short and Bill Hughes was wide via the post. Shine also had an extraordinary miss from the type of free he would normally convert with his eyes close and it was very strange territory watching Kilkenny implode in such a manner.

Yet to their immense credit, they kept going and they performed heroics to get back into the game. Marty Murphy was wide with a shot on goal, that could scarcely be described as a half chance but Niall Shortall blasted to the net a minute later in the 57^th minute. Suddenly the gap was back to two and Offaly had a major let off when a Marty Murphy piledriver rebounded off the crossbar.

Offaly got the next two points and ultimately, they won the day. There was that fantastic Screeney score, a breathtaking ball win and strike from out on the right wing near the stand and then a beaut from his Kilcormac-Killoughey club mate Alex Kavanagh – hats off to Kavanagh for that score as he had went off for a few minutes with a heavy knock after coming on and the ball hadn't ran for him when he came back on but he had the wherewithall to show for the ball, the intelligence to make the space and the confidence to float over the point.

Suddenly the gap was back to four and Kilkenny needed a goal. They got it when Shine blasted a 21 metre free to the net with the sixty minutes just up and there was only a point in it – Cathal King was very questionably penalised for a pick up while Offaly didn't defend that free that well and could have had another man or two back. With injury time not announced on the PA system, the tension was almost unbearable. The very hard working Ter Guinan had a wide from the right and as Offaly defended with great discipline, not conceding a soft free, the final whistle blew just short of two minutes over, much to the delight of 80% of those present.

MATCH ANALYSIS

MAN OF THE MATCH

Liam Hoare: Three standout contenders in Shane Rigney, Brecon Kavanagh and Liam Hoare. Brecon Kavanagh's defensive performance was a joy to watch as he ensured the highly rated Harry Shine struggled to make much headway in open play. He did the simple thing so well, held the centre, cut out ball, hooked and blocked and delivered pinpoint passes. He was at his very best here.

Shane Rigney's attacking tour-de-force was a huge factor in Offaly's win. On a day when many of his fellow forwards found it hard to get much change out of the Kilkenny defence, he was lethally sharp and his haul of 2-3 was absolutely pivotal.

On most days, Rigney would be the choice but on this occasion, Hoare gets the nod. The Carrig-Riverstown club man has made a great recovery from a serious health battle, a hard one for any young man to deal with. He was immense here. His saves from Harry Shine and the Gearoid Dunne penalty, along with a “lesser” but equally crucial one from Dunne, were pivotal to the win. He also made a great save in the lead up to Kilkenny's first goal and it was not his fault Niall Shortall was on hand to tap the rebound home. He dealt very efficiently with a lot of dangerous ball and his composure, his ability to find his man was out of the top drawer. He played with great intuition, generally going short but knowing when to let it out long.

Offaly won with a collective effort but the defence were truly heroic as a unit and Hoare marshalled them superbly.

THE SCORERS

Offaly: Adam Screeney 0-10 (8f and 1 '65'), Shane Rigney 2-3, Donal Shirley, Cathal King, Dan Bourke and Alex Kavanagh 0-1 each.

Kilkenny: Harry Shine 1-9 (1-6f and 1 '65'), Niall Shortall 1-0, Marty Murphy 0-2, Cillian Hackett, James Walsh, Darragh Queally, Gearoid Dunne and Rory Glynn 0-1 each.

THE TEAMS

OFFALY: Liam Hoare (Carrig-Riverstown); Ruari Kelly (Lusmagh), Ben Miller (Birr), James Mahon (Kilcormac-Killoughey); Donal Shirley (Tubber), Brecon Kavanagh (Kilcormac-Killoughey), Ter Guinan (Kilcormac-Killoughey); Colin Spain (Kilcormac-Killoughey), Cathal King (Carrig-Riverstown); Shane Rigney (St Rynagh's), Dan Bourke (Durrow), Conor Doyle (Clara); Leigh Kavanagh (Kilcormac-Killoughey), Barry Egan (Clara), Adam Screeney (Kilcormac-Killoughey). Subs – Alex Kavanagh (Kilcormac-Killoughey) for Leigh Kavanagh (HT), Marcas Dalton (Clara) for Egan (39m),

KILKENNY: Niall Holland; Jeff Neary, Killian Corcoran, Ivan Bolger; Eoghan Lyng, Bill Hughes, Paddy Langton; Cillian Hackett, James Walsh; Darragh Queally, Harry Shine, Gearoid Dunne; Rory Glynn, Marty Murphy, Niall Shortall. Subs – Aaron McEvoy for Walsh (37m), Ted Dunne for Glynn (43m), Sean Moore for Hughes (54m),

Referee – Thomas Gleeson (Dublin).

REFEREE WATCH

It was a very difficult game to referee. It wasn't dirty in any way but it was so physical and intense. There were so many bone rattling tackles. There was plenty of debatable calls on both sides but these very much balanced out. It looked like Thomas Gleeson might be a bit fussy early on but overall, he wasn't, allowing play to run. He had a good, solid game. Offaly were very happy when the referee allowed just two minutes injury time and there couldn't have been complaints if there was another minute or two. Having said that, the free he gave against Cathal King for a pick up for Harry Shine's late goal was a very borderline one and looked wrong so Offaly deserved that break.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

Shane Rigney's second goal in the 40^th minute was a work of art. It also changed everything, giving the momentum back to Offaly and they powered on from there.

VENUE WATCH

O'Connor Park was a very special place to be on Wednesday evening with thousands creating a rare atmosphere. It was great to see such interest in this Offaly team, younger people getting a taste of what their older generations savoured from the 1960s to '90s. The huge crowd was managed with great efficiency by Offaly GAA and supporters listened to their warnings to get in on time. The warm sunshine added to the magic of the evening and the O'Connor Park pitch was at its best.

WHAT'S NEXT

Offaly go on to the Leinster final against Dublin.

STATISTICS

Wides: Offaly - 5 (2 in first half); Kilkenny - 11 (6 in first half).

Yellow cards: Offaly – 2 (Ruari Kelly and Shane Rigney); Kilkenny – 1 (Paddy Langton).

Red cards: 0.