Offaly fall apart after flying start but knuckle down to limit damage in second half
AFTER making a flying start and playing with great promise for a few minutes, Offaly's prospects of a morale boosting start to their Leinster Minor Football Championship campaign unravelled before half time when they were well beaten by Dublin on Saturday.
Leinster Minor Football Championship Group 1 Round 1
Dublin 5-10
Offaly 3-7
Offaly made a dream start. Cathal Weldon almost got in for a goal inside the first minute but they had two three pointers on the board within a minute – first Dylan Dunne's shot just crept i]n over the line and then Ruari Woods got in for a very good goal as Offaly led by 2-0 to no score.
Woods' point made it 2-1 to 0-1 after five minutes and Offaly were playing well, quietly controlling the flow of the game and their confidence growing. Sadly by the time Cian McNamee got Offaly's next point in the 28th minute, Dublin had 5-5 on the board and their morale was in shreds, the game out of reach.
It all fell apart for Offaly in a fifteen minute spell from the ninth to the 24th minute. They were the architects of their own misfortune to an extent as they pushed up a bit high when they were on top and were caught for numbers when Dublin won breaking ball and raced forward at pace. They just lost their way in this period, didn't work hard enough and Dublin were able to get within sight of goals too easily – they got five first half goals and looked like breaking through almost every time they attacked.
Offaly just weren't tight enough and Dublin played some great attacking football. They got the break they needed with a ninth minute penalty goal from Finn McGinnis after he was fouled. Mubarak Salami and Cillian McCabe got in for goals in the 10th and 13th minute as the whole complexion of it changed in the blink of an eye.
Offaly stopped doing the basics well and McGinnis got a second goal in the 21st minute, another softish one and their fifth goal from Salami in the 24th minute summed up Offaly's first half. Ciaran Clifford's fisted attempt for a point fell short and could have been let harmlessly into the net but goalkeeper Jack Ryan played it, batting it out for Salami to score.
It could have been worse for Offaly as Zach Donegan fisted open the bar with an open goal in the 29th minute while the hard working Cian McNamee almost got in for an Offaly goal just before the break, his pile driver just going inches high.
While Offaly had the wind in the second half, a 5-6 to 2-3 half time deficit meant that the game couldn't be rescued and they were very much on a damage limitation exercise.
Offaly rung the changes at half time, introducing three subs, and they did knuckle down. They outscored Dublin by 1-4 to 0-4 in the second half and were much more solid but the deficit was too big and they never looked like getting into it.
In fact Dublin almost got in for a sixth goal at the start with Jack Ryan making a very good save from Ciaran Clifford before Offaly got three good points from Woods, Isaac Ryan and Cian McNamee. Finn McGinniss settled Dublin with a 39th minute point and they never looked like losing in the second half.
Midfielder Eamon Maher, who put in a very solid second half shift, got in for a 48th minute goal after Cian McNamee's shot was blocked and there was no score in the last ten minutes as Dublin did the simple things well - Ruari Woods was unlucky to hit the post with a goal shot in the 62nd minute.
Missing the injured Eoin Rouse, Offaly went into the game with plenty of hope about their prospects after a good warm up campaign. Maybe there was a bit too much talk about them but they are no where near as poor as they looked for twenty minutes in the first half.
With games to come against Louth and Laois and three making the knockout stages, Offaly still have ample time to recover and qualify. It was just one of those games that got away from them and that can happen at underage level. They showed some real promising flashes here at times but the reality is that it would have been really bad only for that great start, they need to really work hard in the next two weeks to turn it around and get back to basics.
MATCH ANALYSIS
MAN OF THE MATCH
Finn McGinniss (Dublin): Finn McGinniss gave Dublin a powerful foothold at midfield. His scorching runs through the middle opened up Offaly and he did a lot of damage when they got on top,. Mubarak Salami also had a great game in the Dublin attack, breaking tackles with powerful charges..
It was a very mixed bag for Offaly but they did dig deep when the game was gone from them and their full forward line of Ruari Woods, Dylan Dunne and Cian McNamee look capable of inflicting real damage on good teams. Tadgh Kelly and Eamon Maher were among the players who put their shoulder to the wheel inn the second half and the next game in Louth on April 10 will tell a lot about this young team.
THE SCORERS
Dublin: Mubarak Salami 2-2, Finn McGinniss 2-1 (1 goal from a penalty), Ciaran McCabe 1-2, Ciaran Clifford and Jamie Heavey (2f) 0-2 each, Zach Donegan 0-1.
Offaly: Ruari Woods 1-2, Dylan Dunne 1-1, Cian McNamee 0-3 (1f), Eamon Maher 1-0, Isaac Ryan 0-1.
THE TEAMS
OFFALY: Jack Ryan (Doon); Caden O'Beirne (Tullamore), Daniel Stoyanov (Clara), Cormac Farrell (Edenderry); Patrick Duffy (Tullamore), Tadgh Kelly (Kilclonfert), Isaac Ryan (Clara); Eamon Maher (Ferbane), Charlie Duffy (Edenderry); Arron Daly (Clonbullogue), Dylan Deehan-Kavanagh (Clara), Cathal Weldon (Bracknagh); Ruari Woods (Belmont), Dylan Dunne (Clara), Cian McNamee (Rhode). Subs – Tomas Carroll (Erin Rovers) for Stoyanov (HT), Tony Furey (Edenderry) for Deehan-Kavanagh (HT), Stephen Byrne (Raheen) for Daly (HT),
DUBLIN: Finn Byrne; Evan Fynes, Jack O'Keeffe, Gareth Hayes; Zach Donegan, Jack Heffernan, Caoilinn O'Connell; Tom O'Ceallaigh, Finn McGinniss; Liam Patten, Ciaran Clifford, Ryan Ennis; Cillian McCabe, Mubarak Salami, Jamie Heavey. Subs – Ernesto Tennant for Donegan (39m), Andrew Blanker for Patten (48m), Matthew Farrell for O'Ceallaigh (50m), David Coakley for Heavey (55m), Reuben Clancy-O'Looney for Salami (60m),
Referee – Niall Ward.
REFEREE WATCH
Niall Ward had an excellent game and there were no issues.
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MOMENT OF THE MATCH
Dublin's third goal from Cillian McCabe in the 13th minute was a disaster for Offaly. They had pushed men forward and when the ball broke at midfield, they were exposed at the back. It instilled real doubts in Offaly and they never recovered.
VENUE WATCH
There was a big crowd of young development squad members in O'Connor Park before the game as they were given their gear for 2025 at a function. A good few did remain but it was also interesting to note that a lot didn't stay on and left – they really should be encouraged to stay for these games, especially when in the ground. Apart from that, the pitch looked really well and there was a nice sized attendance.
WHAT'S NEXT
Offaly play Louth away on Thursday, April 10.
STATISTICS
Wides: Offaly – 8 (2 in first half); Dublin – 5 (4 in first half).
Yellow cards: Offaly – 0; Dublin – 1 (Finn McGinniss)
Black cards: 0
Red cards: 0