Offaly break two big barriers to pick up deserved point in Leinster SHC thriller

OFFALY had two major problems in their National Hurling League Division 1 campaign and they broke through both of those to pick up a richly deserved point in Saturday's Leinster Senior Hurling Championship opener against Dublin on Saturday.

Offaly gave a terrific performance as they drew, 4-22 to 2-28. In some ways, it was a point dropped, rather than gained as Offaly had their chances to win it and were ahead well into injury time when the excellent Donal Burke popped over the equaliser.

Yet no Offaly supporter should be complaining at the result. They would have taken a draw before hand and in many ways it was also a point gained as several players went into the red late on and it was sheer desire and will-power that kept them going.

They almost pulled it off and the players and management can be so proud of the way they performed, the heart and guts they showed on the day. With team captain Charlie Mitchell making a fantastic return to action after sitting out the league because of a heart scare, Offaly played some excellent hurling and they had Dublin in all sorts of bother when they ran at them.

Behind by 1-18 to 2-13 at half time, Offaly were the better team in the second half and could very easily have pulled off a huge win. As it was, the point was a big result for them. Having come back up to the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship last year after a couple of traumatic years in the Christy Ring Cup backwaters, followed by three in the more competitive Joe McDonagh Cup.

It took a serious effort to get back into the top tier and last year was all about survival. They achieved that with a final day win over Antrim and while survival remains the name of the game this year, Offaly also have to step forward. Dublin and Wexford are the initial targets for Offaly as they bid to get back as a force and that is why Saturday's draw is a pleasing result. The day will come where Offaly won't be happy with draws in games that are there for the taking but at the moment, this result is progress and will do nicely.

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Dublin supporters were not happy with the result afterwards, voicing their annoyance on social media. After eliminating Limerick last year and running Clare close in the National Hurling League Division 1B final this year, you can see where they are coming from but they are not taking into account the quality of Offaly, the potential of their young guns and how well they performed on the day. Dublin should be relieved that they gained a point and didn't lose both and they did get out of jail to an extent.

From an Offaly perspective, there were two very important standout features in Saturday's game. Relegation from Division 1 of the National Hurling League was always going to happen but Offaly had two major issues: They only managed one goal and they only hit the obligatory 20 point mark once.

And both of those were token marks, achieved in their two worse performances. The goal was scored by Brian Duignan in a 5-24 to 1-18 loss to Tipperary while they just managed the bare 20 points in what was by far their worse performance, a 6-26 to 0-20 loss in their final game in Cork. They managed late scores to get that but it didn't provide any consolation as a hungry Cork blew them out of the water. A result of that nature was always possible but the disappointing thing for Offaly was that their work rate and application was below expectations when the game did get away from them.

The extenuating circumstances was that championship was just a few weeks away, they were relegated and they wanted to avoid injuries at all costs – they subsequently lost Donal Shirley to a cruciate injury at a training weekend in Waterford.

Their goal and point scoring both reached acceptable levels on Saturday. In the modern hurling world, you simply have to be able to score goals and exceed 20 points. They did both on Saturday and the quality of their goals was particularly pleasing. They clearly went out with a policy of going for goals when they could and Brian Duignan, Shane Rigney, Adam Screeney and Charlie Mitchell brought the crowd to their feet with sensational goals. The quality of the build ups commanded respect as much as the finishes, which were excellent.

Shane Rigney's goal was the pick of the bunch. The St Rynagh's flier had a very good game and his break from midfield and the pace he showed set the pulse racing while his low finish was out of the top drawer. Adam Screeney's vision had created the first and credit to Brian Duignan who positioned himself superbly and finished well. Screeney's own goal at the start of the second half was out top drawer and two of Offaly's best players combined for the fourth: Killian Sampson, superb in the second half, made a great charge forward and Charlie Mitchell's low ground stroke was hurling at its best.

While Offaly did leave scores behind them and Rigney had an injury time goal chance saved, they didn't miss a whole lot and 4-22 would win a lot of games. On the downside, 28 points was a lot to concede and Offaly will also be aware that those statistics come with a warning: Dublin may be ahead of Offaly in the pecking order at the moment but they are in the tier behind the real All-Ireland contenders.

Galway will be a very different kettle of fish in Pearse Stadium next Sunday. They destroyed Kilkenny on Saturday and Offaly will do well to score goals and hit 20 points there. In some ways, that is a damage limitation exercise and few will be expecting Offaly to get anything from this. It is very unlikely and the big targets for Offaly are Wexford and Kildare. They will also be dreaming of a first championship victory over Kilkenny since the 1998 All-Ireland final but Johnny Kelly will be keeping them grounded on that one.

Kilkenny are slipping, coming back into the Leinster pack but they do remain ahead of Offaly. They are a more achievable target than they have been at any stage in the past 25 years but for Offaly, it is all about one game at a time. The first aim remains staying up and everything after that is a bonus. Offaly can and will be aiming higher but Saturday's result and performance is an excellent starting point. It is good for morale and confidence and is a very important sign of progress.