All to play for in fascinating Offaly Senior “B” Football Championship semi-finals

THE busy schedule of games because of a seven team group means that the Senior “B” Football Championship will be the last of the adult ones to be completed this year. The semi-finals take place next weekend with Cappincur taking on Clara and Ballinagar meeting Daingean, with the final on a week later.

Clara v Cappincur: Friday, October 24 in Daingean at 7.30pm

The meeting of Clara and Cappincur has a Friday evening floodlights setting in Daingean to facilitate a Clara wedding on Saturday and while that is not ideal at all for a game of this magnitude, it will be pushed to one side.

Clara have been the championship favourites from the off and they have retained that billing after the group stages but the real business starts now, the real tests. The pressure is on Clara now and they have to show they can perform in the red hot stakes of knockout football as well as in a group where the pressure was way less, the margin for error considerable.

Clara coasted into the semi-finals, winning their first five games but a defeat to Ballinagar in their last game raises questions. They were also fancied last year but lost to Daingean in a group game and that knocked the stuffing out of them to an extent as they were ambushed by Friday’s opponents in the semi-finals.

We shouldn’t read much into that Ballinagar game. Ballinagar had to win whereas the result didn’t matter to Clara but it does hang over them and this game to an extent.

Clara will be under absolutely no illusions about the threat Cappincur pose. There is so much to admire in Cappincur and the way they perform. They have a couple of players heading over the hill and their star man Bill Carroll has seen very little action this year because of injury. He did play a few minutes in their group win over Gracefield and having him on the field for much longer here is pivotal to their prospects.

Bill’s older brother, Eoin Carroll is managing his load and body after years of service for Offaly and Cappincur, but is performing at a very high level and he will have a big influence. Cappincur have been steady without being spectacular. They are very hard to beat and nearly always perform at their best. Their qualification wasn’t entirely comfortable but they were set for the semi-finals from an early stage. They lost to Clara, drew with Ballinagar and Daingean and beat Tubber, Ballycumber and Gracefield.

It is solid form but the fact that they didn’t beat any of the sides in the semi-finals has to be considered in this one. Clara have looked very good for the most part but there are still doubts about them. Veteran players, Graham Guilfoyle and Thomas Deehan remain very important for them and they are certainly beatable.

Cappincur will have the right attitude and belief. They should be very competitive and the key for them is to be breathing down Clara’s necks in the last ten minutes. You can generally be sure of Cappincur performing, not as certain about Clara but the favourites have performed very well this year and are moving well. For all the respect that Cappincur command, Clara have to get the nod at this stage.

Verdict – Clara.

Ballinagar v Daingean: Saturday, October 26 in O’Connor Park at 2pm

Daingean beat Ballinagar in the group stages a few weeks ago and qualified in second place, yet there is a strong case to be made for making Ballinagar favourites for this fascinating local derby.

It is a sign of the changing times that this result is so hard to call. For decades, the only time Ballinagar would have came on Daingean’s radar was when they were passing through it on the way to big games in O’Connor Park or pulling in for a few pints on their way home.

Daingean were a very good senior club for several decades but have gone back dramatically in the past twenty years plus while Ballinagar’s star has risen dramatically. A struggling junior club for most of their existence, they have won junior and intermediate in recent years and now look very well equipped to go the whole way into the top flight. That would be a quite stunning rise up the ranks for Ballinagar and they certainly have that potential.

The window for doing so could be a short one and the impression that they may have to wait a year is very valid but 2025 could also represent their best opportunity to make it – there is talk that players could be travelling next year while injuries could also take the wheels off their charge. The circle will turn for every club, both in a positive and negative way and Ballinagar never know when their golden era will come to a shuddering halt.

The time to make hay is now and there is a definite chance there for Ballinagar this year. Indeed, the feeling that they have the best prospects of beating Clara in this championship remain strong, even if it is a huge ask for them to do that twice.

Firstly though, there is the little task of Daingean on Saturday and this is a 50-50 game. The sides have met already with Daingean winning by 2-13 to 3-8 but that disguises the true story of that game. Daingean were not the best side on the day but rallied powerfully late on to snatch an unlikely win at the death. Ballinagar were ten points up at one stage and should have coasted home. Yet for all their suggestions that they threw it away, they only scored 3-8 and that is not a world beating one.

They also threw away a ten point lead when drawing with Tubber earlier and Ballinagar were all at sea in a defensive sense for much of the group stages – that finger is pointed at the whole team and not just the back division as they just didn't know how to control or manage a game when they got into a winning position. They have worked hard on this and improved but the jury remains out on this aspect of Ballinagar and knockout football will deliver the sentence.

Ballinagar have a very good, exciting young team and now that they have squeezed into the semi-finals, they will fancy their chances.

There is also a case for making Daingean favourites and their star player, Shane Tierney has found his form once again in their attack. They have a solid, hard working team and you would normally expect Daingean to be able to beat Ballinagar. The sand has shifted significantly but Daingean will relish this one and the expectations around Ballinagar.

Ballinagar and Daingean have embarked on similar journeys in recent years with the main difference being that Daingean are coming from a hugely traditional club, Ballinagar are breaking new ground. Both of these can be a blessing and a curse, depending on attitude and don't really matter. A lot of that goes over the head of players and the bottom line is that Ballinagar currently have the players to win this and go senior.

There is a possibility it could take them another year. After winning junior, it took them a year in intermediate before they won that and they are now in their first year in senior “B”. It is a learning curve for them and they have certainly been taught some harsh levels this year.

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Like Ballinagar, Daingean have also come out of junior and won intermediate. They have been a couple of steps ahead of Ballinagar on that journey and they do have an edge in experience at this level. That counts for something and Daingean can make it count on the day but a Ballinagar win would not be a surprise for anyone – and indeed, a defeat for them will surprise many.

Verdict – Daingean.