Early performances augurs well for Offaly football joint managers' gamble

THERE was no shortage of questioning glances and shakes of the head when Offaly GAA chairman Michael Duignan produced a bombshell late last year by unveiling Tyrone legend Mickey Harte as joint Offaly senior football manager with the incumbent, Declan Kelly.

It had been no secret that the review committee charged with recommending management for 2025 were in a bit of a predicament as they deliberated on a 2024 season that had some green shoots, moments of bright promise but ended horrifically with a dire Tailteann Cup campaign that included defeats by London and Limerick – as well as a more palatable one by Down.

Kelly had rightly earned his chance at the job after leading Offaly to a sensational win in the All-Ireland U20 Football Championship in 2021 but the first year did not end well and with the usual rumours of players' discontent floating in the air, it was far from certain that he would be back.

County Board officers had no appetite for changing management after one year but it seemed that their choice was a fairly primitive one: either back Kelly to the hilt or seek new management. Instead, they found an alternative way, producing a real rabbit from the hat by appointing joint managers.

For long time observers of the GAA, there is very little that can truly surprise but absolutely no one saw that coming and the questions about whether it would work or not were legitimate. Harte's track record and what he could bring to Offaly was obvious but him and Kelly are strong willed and minded characters and the potential was certainly there for a conflict of opinions. Like a newly married couple, however, they had made a commitment to each other and had to find a way of making it work for a year anyway. Neither man could afford for it to reach breaking point but the early indications are way more positive than most people could have initially anticipated.

Offaly have hit the ground running in Division 3 of the National Football League. They had a very convincing first round win over Sligo in Tullamore in round one and followed that up last Sunday with an impressive 2-19 to 1-17 win over Laois in Portlaoise. That win was way more clearcut than the final scoreline indicates. Offaly were 1-10 to 0-2 clear not far from half time while they led by 2-18 to 1-9 late on as people began to think of the final whistle.

It was way more like a ten point than a five point game and for the second week in a row, Offaly supporters found themselves in the unusual situation of not having to sit on the edge of their seats late on.

When the league fixtures were released last year, Offaly followers would have marked the first two games down as one where points could be picked up. Home advantage was a big thing against Sligo while Laois are in a transition period, rebuilding – the postponement of their first round game against Leitrim also impacted adversely on them. Deep down, however, many expected that Offaly would slip somewhere, display a fragile underbelly and not get maximum points.

Not only have they got full points but the quality of their displays has come as a pleasant surprise. They have been way more enterprising than last year, attacking at much more pace and amassing scoring tallies that they very rarely hit in 2024. The new rules look to be suiting their lighter but fast players; Mickey Harte is clearly having a positive impact, Declan Kelly is also much wiser in his second year as manager and, most importantly, the 2021 U20 winners are finally beginning to come to their milk.

Lee Pearson has once again found his zest for football and his Edenderry club mate Rory Egan has rediscovered his real form after a very up and down 2024. Both have been very good in defence while Cormac Egan and Cathal Flynn are absolutely flying, revelling in the new rules and the opportunity to race forward at pace. Jack Bryant was also excellent on Sunday for a good three quarters of the game, kicking three points and moving with real awareness – a couple of uncharacteristic wides blighted his display against Sligo but he showed on Sunday how important of a cog he can be in the Offaly machine.

“It is probably a mixture of all those things”, smiled Declan Kelly when asked about the difference in Offaly's play this year. “The rules definitely but we were trying to get them to go forward. That is what they are good at. In fairness to them, they are not the biggest team in the world and you have to go forward. We can't really get into a wrestling match with a lot of teams that realistically are bigger than you. It suits, that is the type of game that they are good at. It is quite energy sapping and you need to get a good amount of lads who are up to that level of pace but overall, it is all playing a part really.”

He made no bones about Mickey Harte's input and influence. “Very good, very good around the set up.”

It is of course early days yet. There are plenty of tough tests ahead and there will be days when things go wrong, Offaly won't play well. There are things bubbling beneath the surface, niggling away and there are plenty of negative people out there, just waiting to hop, knifes sharpened and ready to draw blood, fingers moisturised for extensive keyboard use, if things do unravel.

Long serving forward stalwart Anton Sullivan was not asked onto the 2025 panel – one of Offaly's best players for a decade, Sullivan has not taken the decision quietly while another talented forward, Cian Farrell has walked off the panel after not making the match day 26 for the Sligo game. One of the big players on the 2021 U20 side Morgan Tynan has not yet made the 26 for the two games, though hopefully this talented young player will dig in and try and win his place there. Another long time performer, Peter Cunningham also opted out for 2025 but this was a more natural decision without the controversy surrounding Sullivan and Farrell.

As things stand, however, it is going very well and Offaly can breathe easily as they face into a very welcome week off before they welcome Antrim to Tullamore on Sunday week.

Kelly was certainly able to relax as he reflected on the start on Sunday evening. “Yeah two wins and it is important to get early points on the board. That is the reality of it. With the teams in Division 3, a lot are going to take points off each other. That is just the way it is gone. You could have been in the situation today very easily where a lot of teams had two points after two rounds. To give that bit of a breather where you have two wins out of two before the break, it is positive.”

He acknowledged that they would have targeted four points from the first two games but knew they were big banana skins. “We drew with Sligo last year up in Sligo. There has been very little in that. Up to last year, our record against Laois hasn't been good. There is no point in saying otherwise. To have four points in the bag at this stage, it is a good spot to be in. It is a matter of trying to build on that now.”

Antrim will be in the same category for Offaly, very tricky but on home turf and an opportunity to collect their sixth point. It means that for the moment at least, Offaly can talk about promotion rather than relegation.

“Yes. With Antrim, they beat us by a point last year. The year before, Offaly might have won. They had a good result against Clare last week. It will be a very hard game. They are well seasoned at this stage but listen, it is a league where teams are going to take points from each other. That is the reality of it. We always took it in two rounds. Two rounds and a break, then you have three in a row. You will have injuries and bits and pieces. It is nice to get the break now. You can prepare and maybe try and get a couple more lads back.”

He agreed that the league games are high intensity, energy sapping experiences for all involved. “The pitches too are heavy, though O'Moore Park was solid in fairness to it. It is very energy sapping though. You don't have a long quick turn around. That is the problem. You are going back to back, a week off and then three in a row. Any teams that didn't get to play last week because of the storm or weather are heading for five games in a row which is very hard.”

On Sunday, Offaly's half back line of Cormac and Diarmuid Egan with Jordan Hayes in the centre laid a powerful foundation. While Cormac Egan was always going to be there, it was not a threesome that people would have predicted three weeks ago,

Kelly responded: “Ah yeah. The league is a ruthless enough environment but you have to give lads games. You have to look at fellows. That comes with a bit of a warning too because you need to get points on the board as well. Ultimately you are looking at how lads are going in training and the effort lads are putting in. You are trying to get lads in that are going well.

“I know you said last week that Diarmuid was a bit of a surprise but he is after putting two games back to back. Two very good games and Jordan in fairness to him is a utility player. He can play midfield, half back, half forward. He is one of those guys who you can play in that environment.”

Offaly gave a debut to Robbie Gallagher when he replaced the injured Ruari McNamee after 13 minutes. Outstanding for Ballinagar as they won the Leinster junior football title last year, Gallagher showed potential, scoring a point and was hungry for the ball but he was called ashore after 53 minutes. He got a black card before half time and was then penalised for a new rules infraction after coming back on when he placed the ball on the ground following concession of a free rather than hand it to his opponent.

Kelly explained: “In fairness to him, he came in and he got his score but then he got his black card. It was unfortunate that the black card took him out of the game for that ten minutes too. Robbie is going very, very well in training. His attitude is excellent, he is only 20 years of age. It is about getting lads in there. We got a lot of lads in today at different stages. Chip (Sean) O'Toole and even Diamuid Finneran (as blood subs).”

He saw a bit of Offaly's hurling win over Laois before their game and is conscious of the feel-good mood among fans. “We are happy. It is a good day for the county. I saw a bit of the hurling. They were under pressure at half time and seemed to push away in the second half which is good. In fairness, it is positive around the county and it has been for the last few years.”