Best case scenario for Offaly ahead of Tailteann Cup Draw

Offaly go into the Tailteann Cup Draw on Wednesday as the top seeded team having won Division 3 of the Allianz League this year. 

While Offaly traditionally don't fair well in second tier competitions, they exited at the group phase of the Tailteann Cup last year and shipped a 14 point defeat to London in the process, there seems to be more optimism ahead of this year's competition. 

Offaly are in Pot 1 alongside Kildare, Westmeath and Fermanagh so won't be drawn against these teams in the group phase.

Based on form in the League and Championship, these are the best and worst case scenarios for Offaly ahead of the draw on Wednesday.

The teams in Pot 2 are Laois, Limerick, Sligo and Wexford. Offaly beat both Laois and Sligo in the League this year while Wexford topped Division 4 with a 100% record but were edged by Limerick in the final.

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When it came to the Championship, Sligo gave Mayo a real scare in Castlebar while Laois proved too strong for Wexford winning by 2-21 to 2-11. Limerick also suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of Cork by 0-24 to 0-13. Given that this game is the final game and will be in a neutral venue, the best case for Offaly at this stage would probably be Wexford who appear to be on a slide after a very strong spring.

The four teams in Pot 3 are Antrim, Leitrim, Wicklow and Carlow. Leitrim and Antrim were relegated from Division 3 this year while Wicklow and Carlow finished in third and fourth in Division 4.

Letirim gave a good account of themselves in the Connaught Championship where they gave Mayo a good challenge while Antrim lost out in a high scoring encounter with Armagh in Ulster. Their campaign to play that game in Corrigan Park also galvanised the squad.

Wicklow defeated Longford in the Leinster Championship and were not too far off the pace against Dublin in Newbridge in the quarter-final. Carlow suffered a 14 point defeat top Meath and given they only won three games in Division 4, Carlow would probably be the best team for Offaly to draw.

The four teams in Pot 4 are Tipperary, Longford, London and Waterford and there is a clear best case scenario here for Offaly. While Offaly should be capable of beating any of the four teams, London is the draw the team should want. Not only is there a trip to London as part of the deal, a game in Ruislip would give them the chance to banish the demons of last year's defeat to the same side in O'Connor Park.

After the group stages, the top team advances to the quarter-final while the second placed teams and the three best third placed teams, along with New York, go into the Preliminary quarter-finals.

The first round of games is on the weekend of May 10 and May 11 where the top seeded team will host the third seeded team and the second seeded team will host the fourth seeded team.

On the weekend of May 17 & 18, the third seeded team will host the second seeded team while the fourth seeded team will host the top seeds.

The weekend of May 31 and June 1 with see the first and second seeds and the third and fourth seeds meet at neutral venues.

The draw will take place at 1.30pm on Wednesday, April 30 and will be broadcast live on GAA.ie and GAA YouTube channel.

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