Two pointers tell the difference as gutted Offaly bow out after coughing up ten point half time lead

THE advent of two pointers has very dramatically changed football and it was never more apparent than in Navan on Sunday afternoon when the half time impression that a ten point interval lead would not be sufficient for Offaly proved to be correct.

Leinster Senior Football Championship quarter-final

Meath 1-25

Offaly 0-21

Last year, it would have been game over with a ten point lead and Offaly were full value for their 0-15 to 0-5 interval advantage. With a strong wind on their back, they played some great, exciting attacking football to go ten points clear but we knew it would be very tight and that a Meath win was entirely possible.

And so it proved as Meath began to kick two pointers for sport in the second half and all the momentum was with them from an early stage on the resumption. Fourteen of their second half points came from two pointers and eventually broke Offaly, though the 1-25 to 0-21 final scoreline in now way indicates how close they were to the win and the mighty effort they gave on the day.

It would have taken very little more for Offaly to have won the game and the visitors were only two points behind going into injury time. Meath wrapped it up with a late 1-2 but they were very relieved to win and knew that this one could have went badly wrong for them.

Offaly did contribute to their own downfall, engaging in bouts of kamikaze football to allow Meath to take the initiative while they never scored from play in the second half. They simply couldn't afford that while they didn't get the goal that they were always likely to need to win it.

Offaly were forced onto the back foot from the start of the second half, though the almost got in for a 37^th minute goal when Shane Tierney just didn't get enough onto his pass across goal for Jordan Hayes. Matthew Costello and Conor Duke got two pointers as Meath had the deficit back to 0-15 to 0-9 after 39 minutes. A Paddy Dunican '45' and Dylan Hyland free settled Offaly but they then coughed up two more two pointers to Duke and Costello in a devastating five minute spell that saw Meath reduce it to a score, 0-17 to 0-14.

A great two point free from Paddy Dunican restored a five point lead and they had a real chance but it quickly unravelled and they did not help themselves. Firstly Jack McEvoy didn't get out of the way quick enough after fouling, the ball was brought in and Eoghan Frayne curled over the two point free. Then Paddy Dunican took too long with taking a free, the ball was thrown in, McEvoy was penalised for over-carrying and Matthew Costello pointed the two point free to leave Meath a point behind, 0-19 to 0-18 with seventeen minutes to go.

Offaly dug deep and fought with everything they had. Meath began to go for two pointers when they should perhaps have been working the ball in and Meath had to wait until the 60^th minute for super sub James Conlon to equalise.

It was hard to see anything other than a Meath win now and a super Jack Flynn two pointer put them 0-21 to 0-19 ahead in the 64^th minute. Costello and Conlon added points before another excellent Dunican two point lead cut the gap to two and kept Offaly alive.

They were, however, sucking on fumes and Meath wrapped it up with a 70^th minute goal from James Conlon – Paddy Dunican was way out the field when Costello shot and James Conlon was able to out jump Rory Egan to get the ball into the net.

Offaly were beaten and a 75^th minute two point free from Billy Hogan was the icing on the cake for Meath.

It was a hard, harsh defeat for Offaly but they can be really proud of the go they gave it. They were extremely committed and played some super football in the first half but just weren't able to do it in the second half. They made mistakes but emptied the tank and while they now head into the Tailteann Cup, they can hold their heads very high. They have won promotion from Division 3 and were extremely competitive here which represents definite progress from last year but the key to their season now is to give the Tailteann Cup a proper go and not go belly up like last year.

You would have said the wind was a five point one but the advent of two pointers has made football a very different game and Offaly's half time lead was a whopping ten points, 0-15 to 0-5.

Yet it is the nature of things that the game was far from over with anything possible in the first half. It was, however, a fairly sensational first half by Offaly who settled quickly into the game and then began to pull the trigger once they realised Meath were standing off them. Keith O'Neill got a superb five point haul, two of them from two pointers as Offaly powered into a 0-8 to no score lead after 15 minutes – Offaly also turned down a tap over free in this spell with Dylan Hyland going out to attempt two points but floating it wide.

The concession of a couple of soft frees with Daire McDaid and Lee Pearson penalised for pulling, allowed Meath to settle as Eoghan Frayne and Matthew Costello pointed. Meath had a spell of pressure but some poor shooting and shot selection meant that they didn't punish Offaly.

Offaly went from the 15^th to 26^th minutes without a point but then Cormac Egan settled them with a very good score. Kyle Higgins got an excellent two pointer and Shane Tierney and Jack Bryant also pointed in a great period of attacking play as Offaly led by 0-13 to 0-2 after 31 minutes.

Meath didn't get their first score from play until Sean Coffey's 35^th one and while Offaly would have taken a ten point half time lead every day of the year before hand, absolutely no one was counting any chickens at the break.

MATCH ANALYSIS

MAN OF THE MATCH

Matthew Costello (Meath): Matthew Costello emerged as a match winner and had an outstanding second half while Meath had several other players who stood up to be counted.

For Offaly, Keith O'Neill had a sensational first half, Cormac Egan was excellent in defence where John Furlong also went well. Jordan Hayes and Kyle Higgins put in terrific shifts around the middle and Cathal Flynn worked his socks off in attack and Shane Tierney had a good first half.

THE SCORERS

Meath: Matthew Costello 0-9 (1 2p free and 2f), James Conlon 1-2, Conor Duke 0-4 (2 x 2p), Eoghan Frayne (1 2p free and 1fr) 0-3, Billy Hogan (2p free) and Jack Flynn (2p) 0-2 each, Bryan Menton, Aaron Lynch and Sean Coffey 0-1 each.

Offaly: Keith O'Neill 0-6 (2 x 2p, 1f), Paddy Dunican 0-5 (2 x 2p free and 1 '45'), Dylan Hyland 0-4 (3f), Kyle Higgins (1 x 2p) and Shane Tierney 0-2 each, Cormac Egan and Jack Bryant 0-1 each.

THE TEAMS

OFFALY: Paddy Dunican (Shamrocks); Lee Pearson (Edenderry), Aidan Bracken (Ballycommon); Daire McDaid (Tullamore); Rory Egan (Edenderry). John Furlong (Tullamore), Cormac Egan (Tullamore); Jack McEvoy (Clonbullogue), Jordan Hayes (Edenderry); Kyle Higgins (Ferbane), Cathal Flynn (Ferbane), Keith O'Neill (Clonbullogue); Dylan Hyland (Raheen), Jack Bryant (Shamrocks), Shane Tierney (Daingean). Subs – Aaron Leavy (Tullamore) for Bracken (62m), Eoin Sawyer (Castleknock) for Tierney (63m), David Dempsey (Ballycommon) for McDaid (64m),

MEATH: Billy Hogan; Seamus Lavin, Sean Rafferty, Brian O'Halloran; Sean Coffey, Donal Keogan, Ciaran Caulfield; Jack Flynn, Bryan Menton; Conor Duke, Ruari Kinsella, Keith Curtis; Diarmuid Moriarty, Matthew Costello, Eoghan Frayne. Subs – Aaron Lynch for Moriarty (46m), Shane Walsh for Curtis (54m), James Conlonm for Kinsella (60m), Ronan Ryan for Rafferty (64m), Adam O'Neill for Lavin (69m)

Referee – Sean Lonergan (Tipperary).

REFEREE WATCH

Sean Lonergan refereed it fairly but was a bit hard on Offaly in the second half. Meath's first two points were from soft frees but Daire McDaid and Lee Pearson did foul but he didn't give John Furlong, Cormac Egan and Cathal Flynn second half frees they looked well entitled to in close to the Meath goal - he communicated well with his officials and was in control.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

There was a kamikaze spell by Offaly from the 45^th to 50^th minute when they made mistakes and missed a couple of chances that they had to get. Meath only kicked two points in this spell and Offaly were still a point ahead after 59 minutes but the momentum had changed and couldn't be retrieved. Meath were 0-23 to 0-19 ahead before Offaly's next score and were in serious bother.

The missed goal chance at the start of the second half for Offaly was also a big moment and a Jordan Hayes goal there might have changed everything.

VENUE WATCH

A decent crowd created a good atmosphere in Pairc Tailteann and Meath managed the fixture efficiently. They did struggle with the scoreboard at times, with an incorrect score posted on a couple of occasions.

SEE NEXT: 

https://www.offalyexpress.ie/news/gaa/1776880/offaly-cruise-into-quarter-finals-without-firing-on-all-cylinders.html

WHAT'S NEXT

Meath play Dublin in the semi-final on April 26/27 while Offaly go into the Tailteann Cup.

STATISTICS

Wides: Offaly – 3 (1 in first half); Meath – 13 (7 in first half).

Yellow cards: Offaly – 1 (Jordan Hayes); Meath – 1 (Eoghan Frayne).

Black cards: 0

Red cards: 0