Offaly senior hurling teams profiled as championship gets underway this weekend

The Offaly Senior Hurling Championship gets underway this weekend with all five games down for decision on Saturday. 

Kevin Corrigan goes through all the teams 

GROUP 1

Kilcormac-Killoughey

Manager – Tom Murphy;

Selectors – Seamus Spain and Barry Gorman;

Captain – Enda Grogan;

Any absentees from last year – None;

New players - Charlie Mitchell, Charlie Bracken, Oisin Kilmartin, Dan Coughlan;

Star man – Cillian Kiely;

Key players – Jordan Quinn, Cathal Kiely and Jack Screeney.

Prospects – Kilcormac-Killoughey will be bitterly disappointed at the manner of their defeat by St Rynagh's in the 2020 SHC final recently. It raises real questions about them and they have a major point to move. They are strong contenders but will have their work cut out in what will be a very tight race for the four semi-final places. They should be able to squeeze in and they have talented young minors coming on line but St Rynagh's look to be a step ahead of them at the moment.

Birr

Manager – Brendan Bugler;

Selectors – John Kennedy and Paul Molloy;

Captain – Brian Mullins;

Any absentees from last year – None;

New players - A few players are progressing up out of minor ranks, including players who have played minor and U-20 for Offaly. Lochlann Quinn in particular is likely to make the step up. Tomas Bolger will also be on the senior panel;

Star man – Eoghan Cahill;

Key players – Brian Watkins, Colm Mulrooney and Brendan Murphy;

Prospects – Birr are an emerging team, moving in the right direction but making that big breakthrough is not simple. Getting out of the group is the big priority for them and that is far from assured. It will be very tight for them but they are contenders.

Coolderry

Manager – Brian Culbert;

Selectors – Brendan O'Meara and Paul Moloney;

Captain – David King;

Any absentees from last year – Cathal Parlon is away with work commitments;

New players - Cian Burke and Ciaran Teehan;

Star man – Brian Carroll;

Key players – David King, Kevin Connolly and Cathal Parlon;

Prospects – Coolderry continue to confound expectations. Many of their best players are now in the veteran stages of their career but they have tremendous heart and appetite for battle. They command respect, have proven match winners and they can trouble any team. They will, however, be on the border line for qualifying out of the group and while they are on the short list of contenders, you couldn't make them favourites at the moment.

Ballinamere

Manager - Kevin O Brien

Selectors - Steven Ravenhill and Brendan Murtagh

Captain - Gerry Spollen

Any absentees from last year - none

New players - Mark Troy, Ronan Cleary;

Star man – Brian Duignan;

Key players – Ross Ravenhill, Ciaran Burke and John Murphy;

Prospects – An emerging team who have a loads of talent and a lot of the ingredients to become contenders in the coming years, 2021 is possibly too soon for them. In Brian Duignan, Ross Ravenhill, Ciaran Burke and John Murphy, they have four Offaly senior hurlers and that is a huge representation for them. With that type of talent and they heading into their peak in the next couple of years, Ballinamere will have to start making progress soon. They shouild be able to challenge for a semi-final place but securing that is far from certain and they are outsiders at the moment – though they can't be fully ruled out.

Kinnitty

Manager – Denis Kelly;

Selectors – Sean Clarke, Mark Corrigan, Peadar Bergin;

Captain – Willie Molloy and Christopher Leonard;

Any absentees from last year – None;

New players – Danny Flanagan and Aaron Browne;

Star man – Shane Kinsella;

Key players – Paddy Rigney, Paddy Delaney and Colm Coughlan;

Prospects – Just back up from senior “B”, Kinnitty have a lot of decent hurlers but retaining their senior status is their priority and it is hard to see them winning their first title since 1985.

GROUP 2

St Rynagh's

Manager – Ken Hogan;

Selectors – David Hughes, Martin Hanamy and Eunan Martin;

Captain – Conor Clancy;

Any absentees from last year – None;

New players - Callum Flannery while Brian Rigney has returned from a long term injury;

Star man – Ben Conneely;

Key players – Aidan Treacy, Pat Camon and Dermot Shortt;

Prospects – St Rynagh's are the favourites and the team everyone else has to beat. They were very impressive winners over Kilcormac-Killoughey in the 2020 senior hurling final a couple of weeks ago and they would love to win three in a row. Having had their share of hardship for a good few years, they will want to make hay while the sun is shining and they have it everyway. Likely champions.

Belmont

Manager – Ollie Baker;

Selectors – Neal Buckley, Aidan Ryan and Ciaran Kenny with team secretary, Peter Molloy;

Captain – Colin Egan;

Any absentees from last year – Joe Maher and Jack Clancy are concentrating on football while David Kelly and James Nally have long term injuries;

New players – Adam Egan;

Star man – Oisin Kelly;

Key players – Damien Egan, Leon Fox and David Nally

Prospects – Belmont have been knocking on the door for a few years but haven't been able to make the breakthrough into the final. They were very close on a few occasions, though they were somewhat disappointing in last year's semi-final defeat by K/K. They have a lot going for them and are definite possibilities for a semi-final but face big challenges in fulfilling their dreams.

Shinrone

Manager – Trevor Fletcher;

Selectors – Eoin Maher and Eamon Hoctor;

Captain – Daniel Doughan;

Any absentees from last year – None;

New players - There will be younger players challenging for places;

Star man – Killian Sampson;

Key players – Jason Sampson, Dan Doughan and DJ McLoughin.

Prospects – An enigma who have a lot of talent, are capable of beating most teams but occasionally flatter to deceive. A semi-final place is their target but they are on a tight rope and could be squeezed out.

Seir Kieran

Manager – Seamus Gleeson;

Selectors – David Kennedy, Fergal Mulrooney, Shane Murphy;

Captain – Michael Gilligan;

Any absentees from last year – Adrian Hynes and Eoin Coughlan;

New players - None;

Star man – Joe Bergin;

Key players – Kevin Dunne and Sean Coughlan;

Prospects – It is always enjoyable watching Seir Kieran play. They are tough but they play hurling and they always empty the tank. However, they are outsiders and will find it hard to make a semi-final.

Drumcullen

Manager – Shane Hand and Neil Buckley;

Selectors – Peter Lyons, Declan Murray and Micheal Spain;

Captain – Padraig Guibnan;

Any absentees from last year – Joseph McCarthy is away on Army duty;

New players - Sean Hynes;

Star man – Padraig Guinan;

Key players – Conor Gath and Colm Gath;

Prospects – Drumcullen were thrilled to get back to senior ranks last year and staying up is their big priority. They have a limited pick and while they have some very good hurlers, they almost certainly won't be good enough to challenge for the Sean Robbins Cup.

This week's fixtures

Saturday

Birr v Drumcullen; O'Connor Park 2:00 PM - Referee: Joey Deehan
Coolderry v Belmont Birr 3:00 PM Referee: Shane Guinan
Kilcormac-Killoughey v Seir Kieran O'Connor Park 6:00 PM Referee: Kieran Dooley
Kinnitty v St Rynaghs Hurling Birr 6:00 PM Referee: Adam Kinahan
Ballinamere v Shinrone Rath 6:00 PM Referee: Richie Fitzsimons