Win or bust for Offaly footballers as Division 2 status goes on the line

OFFALY senior footballers will face their biggest game of the year to date when they take on Cork in a National Football League Division 2 showdown in Tullamore next Sunday.

It is all very straightforward for Offaly, who must win to stay up and a defeat or a draw will not suffice.

With Down already relegated, Offaly and Cork are on three points while Clare have four points. A draw between Offaly and Cork and a defeat for Clare against Down will leave the three sides tied on four points but Offaly will still go down. Their scoring difference is worse than their competitors, -34 compared to -27 for Cork and -7 for Clare.

It means that anything other than an Offaly win will put them down and it is certainly squeaky bum time for them.

They find themselves in a precarious position after a very topsy turvy campaign. Offaly had a poor day at the office when losing heavily to Roscommon last Sunday, 2-18 to 0-14. While the defeat itself was not a surprise, the scale of it was disappointing and Offaly now have a major point to prove.

With a number of talented members of the All-Ireland U-20 winning side from last year emerging onto the scene, Offaly would love to retain their Division 2 status – they fielded without U-20s last Sunday as they are preparing for their Leinster championship opener against Louth on April 7.

Offaly will no doubt be trying to field their strongest possible team for next Sunday's crunch clash against Cork. This is one of the most important games of the year for Offaly football and they will be going all out to survive.

It won't be simple and Cork will be the favourites to win and survive. Cork had a good win to relegate Down last Sunday and while they have had a poor campaign, they are a large county with a huge football pick. There is no way they should be in Division 3 but their form has been very sporadic and Offaly will fancy their chances.

Johnny Moloney returned last Sunday, coming on in the last quarter and he will be in contention for a starting place, though Offaly may opt to keep him on the sideline. Anton Sullivan started his first game in a while last Sunday and is likely to retain his starting place.

It has not been a surprise to see Offaly struggling in the league but they could be a couple of points better off. They were very unlucky to only draw with Meath in Tullamore. Offaly were the better team that day but a goal deep in injury time gave Meath a share of the spoils. That draw has had a big impact on Offaly and there survival prospects would be much greater with another point on board.

The real damage, however, was done with a first round defeat by Clare. After starting well, Offaly fell apart and were resoundingly beaten, 1-13 to 0-7. Clare have found the going tough since then, picking up draws against Cork and Roscommon but it will be enough to keep them up.

Meath are secure with six points and are very fortunate to be in this position. They were arguably the worse side that Offaly have played this year but have scraped to safety – they should have been beaten in Tullamore and a late point after Clare goalkeeper Stephen Ryan was dispossessed gave them a win in Navan last Sunday.

It has really been a two tier division with promoted Galway along with Derry and Roscommon much better than everyone else – ironically one of Offaly's better performances came in a defeat in Galway. There hasn't been much difference between Meath, Clare, Cork, Offaly and Down and any of this five could have made the drop while they were all way short of being a Division 1 side.

Offaly's only win came in Down and that has given them a fighting chance of staying up. They won't be afraid of Cork, who will be vulnerable. Last Sunday's performance does not augur well for Offaly's prospects but this is what football is all about. The ability to perform and win when the pressure is at its most intense, the stakes at their highest and there could be another powerful sting in the tail from Offaly.