Offaly minor hurlers all set for big date with destiny

FOR the Offaly minor hurlers and their management, it is just one more game, one more step on a ladder that may end with a success beyond their dreams. And that is all they can focus on – past history and possible futures simply can't come into the equation.

For Offaly GAA and Offaly hurling in its widest possible sense, Sunday's All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship final against Tipperary represents much more than that. Like last year's All-Ireland U-20 football success, it is a potential game changer for Offaly, a match that could change everything for the county.

One team and one group of players can't do that on their own. That level of responsibility simply does not belong to them but their success could reap profound dividends for the county. A rising tide raises all ships and an All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship win would give hope to the players ahead of them and inspire those coming behind them. It will whet the appetite of all for success as they observe what it means to Offaly people – the way they are getting behind this young team and their excitement and joy at their success.

This game is shrouded in history. Offaly and Tipperary are neighbouring counties and there is a mutual apathy towards each other along the border areas. It is at its deepest in Moneygall which is in Offaly but plays it hurling in Tipperary and Carrig and Riverstown which is in Tipperary but hurls in Offaly – contrary to popular perception, these clubs were not ceded in a swop and ended up in their neighbouring counties at very different times and for different reasons but that is a story for another day.

There may be the typical local counties rivalry and passions abounding but this has not been represented in a plethora of championship meetings, especially at the tail end of the championships. Before the introduction of the qualifiers in the 2000s, championship meetings between Offaly and Tipperary were rare – Offaly beat Tipperary in the 1987 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship final, Tipperary turned the tables in the 1989 All-Ireland U-21 Hurling Championship final while much earlier, Tipp had beaten Offaly in the 1953 All-Ireland junior hurling decider.

And that was it. Before Offaly made their big hurling breakthrough in 1981, Tipp were a powerful force. They like to claim to be the “home of hurling” and while that can be contested by a few counties, their success rate and All-Ireland wins was certainly the envy of Offaly. Them, Kilkenny and Cork were the three great powers for several decades and Tipp have a powerful tradition.

Offaly's All-Ireland senior wins in 1981 and 1985 was the catalyst for a great minor run later in the decade. A golden generation of Offaly hurler won All-Ireland minor hurling titles in 1986, 1987 an 1989. They went onto fulfill their potential at senior level, adding two more All-Ireland championships in 1994 and 1995 before the wheels came off after a 2000 All-Ireland final defeat by Kilkenny.

Since then, Offaly hurling has been through a torrid time. Within a couple of years of 2000, Offaly were no longer legitimate All-Ireland contenders and the slippage gathered pace after that, culminating in relegation to hurling's third tier, the Christy Ring Cup three years ago.

They got out of the Christy Ring Cup last year but failed to qualify for the Joe McDonagh Cup final this year and a very long road lies ahead of Offaly. They competed in Division 1 of the National Hurling League this year but were a long way out of their depth and returned to Division 2.

The performances in league and championship this year showed the challenges facing Offaly hurling. In the middle of all that, a young team of U-17s have ignited the county, inflamed hope and showed that a resurection is possible.

The prospects of this team have been talked about for some time – basically since they reached the final of the Tony Forristal tournament at U-14 level three years ago, where they lost to Tipperary. It was the first time in a long time that Offaly had truly competed with the top teams and while it was a tournament and at a young age, it showed that this group of players were exceptional.

They have shown their promise this year, embarking on a fantastic run that now has them on the threshold of the ultimate success. They competed in tier 2 of the Leinster Minor Hurling Championship with Laois and Kildare. With all three teams qualifying, this was merely for practice but Offaly won their two games, beating Kildare by 3-23 to 0-8 and scraping over Laois, 1-20 to 1-17.

One of their biggest games of the year was against Antrim in the quarter-final at Dowdallshill, just outside Dundalk. They pulled away in the second half for a convincing 3-22 to 0-11 win and that showed that this Offaly team had something special going.

They performed very well as they beat Dublin 3-18 to 1-15 in the Leinster semi-final and the provincial final against Laois was a magical occasion. The sides tossed for venue with Laois winning the right to host it in Portlaoise. It was seething, throbbing cauldron of humanity as almost 20,000 went into O'Moore Park and the atmosphere was never to be forgotten. Offaly showed their quality in the second half as they took over in all sectors and pulled away for a convincing 0-21 to 0-13 win.

They then had a long break as Laois, Clare and Galway played off in a round robin section to determine the two All-Ireland semi-finals. Clare came through to face Offaly and it was another special evening as thousands went to Thurles with Offaly vastly outnumbering the Clare support. The long break showed as Offaly were ring rusty early on, conceding the opening three points. However, once they found their feet, it was clear that they were the better team and they ha a deserved 2-16 to 0-18 win.

Tipp have been very impressive in the campaign and will start as favourites. They beat Waterford and Clare in the group stages of the Munster championship, they hammered Waterford in the semi-final and beat Clare on penalties in the Munster final. In the All-Ireland semi-final, they showed great character to beat Galway by 3-24 to 3-20.

Both sides have a lot of quality. Offaly's two star players are Dan Ravenhill and Adam Screeney. Ravenhill's ability to hit long range points has been a great asset to Offaly and he is the team captain and leader. Screeney has physical developing to do but he is as skilful as any Offaly player in the past was at this age. His ability to conjure up the magical just takes the breath away.

Offaly have quality all over the field. Full back James Mahon has the ability to go on and play at senior county level and others have that potential.

The Offaly management have one major dilemma facing them ahead of the final. Daniel Hand missed the Leinster semi-final and final because of grandular fever and he made a huge impact when introduced against Clare. He would have been on the team the whole time only for getting sick and Kinnitty's Cathal Robinson came in and did well, getting a couple of important scores.

The Offaly management will have to decide whether to start Robinson or Hand. The rest of the team will pick itself and they have a big judgement call to make – they don't have massive game changing options on the side line and they will make a call on whether they are best starting Hand or keeping him in reserve.

Offaly are managed by Limerick man Leo O'Connor. He came on as a sub in Limerick's All-Ireland senior hurling final defeat by Offaly in 1994 and has since played a key role in the modern progress of Limerick hurling, helping putting their renowned development squad system in place.

The results and performances show how well he has done as manager and they will travel to Nowlan Park, Kilkenny with their hopes high. There is always fears about an All-Ireland final principally that a team won't perform and will be blown out of the water.

That possibility is in front of Offaly but all the indications are there that they will compete. The initial target for Offaly is to make sure that they are competitive and in the hunt at the three quarter-way stage. The game will take care of itself from there and if you are good enough, you will win but you have to be competitive at this stage.

It will take a huge performance from Offaly but they have an excellent chance. Their confidence is soaring after their performances this year and they know what it means to their county. There will be a huge Offaly crowd in Kilkenny on Sunday and they could witness another history making afternoon.