Result all that mattered for relieved Offaly senior hurling manager

FOR once, there will be no need for in-depth analysis or reflecting on every aspect of the performance as Offaly managed to hold onto their Leinster Senior Hurling Championship status with a very nervous 3-15 to 1-16 win over Antrim in Tullamore.

2-9 to 0-11 ahead at half time after playing against the strong wind and with Antrim having had corner back Niall O'Connor sent off after six minutes, you couldn't envisage anything other than a comfortable win.

Yet Offaly struggled woefully in the second half, only managing to add 1-6 to their tally and living on their wits. James McNaughton's 66^th minute goal had Antrim back to within a point and it had all the hallmarks of them snatching an audacious against the odds win, it unravelling for Offaly.

A sensational Killian Samspon goal with four minutes left, however, settled the issue and it was a mightily relieved Offaly side that departed the field on Michael Kennedy's final whistle.

There were times in the second half when it looked like Antrim had the extra man and that Offaly were doing their utmost to lose the game. There was extenuating circumstances as a number of the Offaly team had been laid up with a virus during the week. Mark Troy, Ciaran Burke, Donal Shirley, Dan Bourke and Brian Duignan were all affected by this and it was a factor in them running out of energy and steam in the second half – Dan Bourke had been excellent in the first half but wasn't as prominent in the second half. Similarly, Brian Duignan went very well early on but his legs went in the closing quarter and for Offaly, the bottom line was the result and nothing else.

And relief was very much the mood of Offaly manager Johnny Kelly when he spoke after the final “Yeah, that's one word. Breathing again! Happy to be up in Leinster again. That's all that mattered today.”

Remarkably Offaly went twenty minutes without a score in the second half when a man up and with the wind blowing up a storm at times. Kelly has no explanation for that.

“I really don't know. I just don't know. Our forwards just looked lacklustre. Simple possession that they should have picked up, like dropping ball … I think maybe nerves, and maybe the closer we got to the finish line, the more edgy they got. We missed some really, really easy scores. And it just kept Antrim in the game. I suppose we were fighting for air right at the end because again, another mistake at the back and we gift a goal to Antrim, and then it's right back in the mix.

“And out of nowhere, we get a really good pass across the field, and Killian Samson puts the ball away … and just relief.”

It was all about survival for Offaly and Antrim and Offaly managed to do it.

“Just about, this is the thing. It's so important that we learn from this and go forward, because it's not so much a hurling battle, it's a psychological warfare here with these guys. They've been down for so long, and been so far down that to get back up to this level and stay at this level - it's a huge ask, mentally, for these lads to believe that they're good enough. That's where we really need to focus on - our hurling ability at times is as good as what's around. Probably not as fast as the top teams, or as quick as the Kilkennys and the Tipperarys of this world, but they can get there. Just to come through that battle and add a psychological layer to next year will hopefully help it.”

He agreed that nerves were a big factor in Offaly's second half malfunction.

“Yeah, but like we're not going to the Ukraine front line, we're going to play a game of hurling. So come on, put the ball over the bar when you’re in front of the goals!

“Unfortunately, that's how it is. But thankfully, Charlie Mitchall was outstanding, Donal Shirley at the back all through. We had really good displays from three or four of those guys. We battled hard in other areas. To be fair, Antrim weren’t going to lie down either.

“It's really tough on them to go back down again. I don't know. We have a committee put in place in Croke Park to look at hurling and develop it in different counties. Start with the middle tier.

“Is it right that Antrim go down again on the basis of relegation? Maybe it is, but I just think that … like, for us today, if we’d to go back down after only coming up last year, how hard that would be to raise everyone's spirits for next year. I don't know whether you’d even want me around next time. They probably still mightn’t want me around! Look, that's how it plays out. So much hinges on those last minutes and thankfully we got there.”

The win gives Offaly something to build on.
“Yeah, that's it. We'll have a few more good young hurlers hopefully that will come back in and stay injury-free. It's been difficult. There's such an emphasis in this county and rightly so on underage development and that under-20 team, which doesn't happen in other counties. They have their time with the players and we gave them loads of time there. That's a challenge for senior management as it is for the under-20s. But look it, at the end of the day we're in Division 1A next year and we're still in Leinster, so we're back in the hunt.”

Kelly feels the experience of this year will serve Offaly's younger players well.

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“They do already know that there's a difference in physicality straight away. That was very evident in Kilkenny and in Nowlan Park, how much stronger Paddy Deegan is in comparison to Dan Bourke and Colin Spain in midfield who's a very slight, young but a great little player. Physicality is huge in this game. Power and pace. We have a number of guys there. We need a few more. Strength and conditioning, they'll obviously realise that's an area we have to focus on - as we have before. That's for next week or whenever we decide to look down and review the year.”