Powerful second half secures huge Offaly win against old rivals

PLENTY of banana skins may lie ahead but Offaly grinded out one of their most important results in years with a great win over neighbours and old rivals, Laois in the first round of the Joe McDonagh Cup in O'Connor Park on Saturday afternoon.

Joe McDonagh Cup Round 1

Offaly 3-19

Laois 1-22

They survived on their wits against the Joe McDonagh Cup favourites in the first half but hung on in there and rallied powerfully in the second half to get a win that really sets them up.

A first round win in hurling's second tier does not signify anything seismic but it was hugely pleasing for Offaly. Laois have generally had the measure of them in the past decade and were just relegated out of the top flight last year. It provides another sign of recovery for Offaly, another indication that they may be in the process of turning a corner. It may be small signs and no one can take anything for granted but with an exciting generation of last year's minor team getting ready to graduate to this level in the next two-three years, the current flagbearers are clearly intent on getting Offaly into the best position possible.

They could very easily have lost this game and were lucky to be in the hunt at half time after a substandard first half. Offaly's first touch was poor at times in that first half, they made far too many errors and they couldn't cope with the excellence of Laois' Aaron Dunphy, Stephen Maher and Aidan Corby. They ensured a very uncomfortable 35 minutes for the Offaly defence, scoring 12 of their 14 first half points, nine of them from play.

They caused a variety of Offaly defenders serious problems and a couple could have been looking anxiously over at the sideline at different stages. The brilliance of Ben Conneely and Ciaran Burke did repel a sufficient volume of Laois attacks to keep the Offaly rearguard from being blown out of the water and they hung in grimly.

Goals from Eoghan Cahill and Joey Keenaghan kept Offaly alive and it was a sign of the way the first half went that the home side were much the happier at the break, even though they were trailing by 0-14 to 2-6.

The statistic that Laois outscored the winners by 14 to eight is a much truer reflection of the way the first half went than the two point gap. Laois may have had the wind on their backs in the first half but they really ripped into Offaly. How significant was the wind? Hard to know as it seemed to swirl of being all over the place but Stephen Corcoran was getting an extra 25 metres on his puck outs in the second half. It was probably worth 3-4 points and Offaly were very much in the hunt at the break.

Laois were on fire at the start, getting four lightening points before Eoghan Cahill opened Offaly's account with a fifth minute '65'. Laois were full value for their 0-5 to 0-1 lead when Offaly got a crucial goal against the run of play in the ninth minute. David Nally sent a pinpoint cross field ball across the goals, Eoghan Cahill did very well to win it and drive a low shot to the net,

It was only a brief annoyance to Laois who quickly got back on the saddle. They got four points on the trot and were 0-10 to 1-3 ahead when Offaly's second goal arrived in the 23rd minute. Charlie Mitchell broke fast from midfield, and passed to Brian Duignan whose clever lay off sent Joey Keenaghan in on goals. The Clodiagh Gaels man opted for power, blasting to the net and amazingly Offaly were only a point behind 0-10 to 2-3.

It was nip and tuck from here to the interval with Laois unable to get more than two in a row and Cahill's free two minutes into injury time made it 2-6 to 0-14 at the break.

It was a very different Offaly performance in the second half. They made far less mistakes and seemed more focused on doing the simple things well. It was a really pleasing second half display as Offaly stood up to be counted all over the field and Laois were on the back foot most of the way, despite spells where they flourished. Almost from the restart, it became clear that Offaly had a great chance of winning this game. They got three of the first four points with Adrian Cleary's opportunist strike levelling it up at 2-9 to 0-15 by the 38th minute.

After Stephen Maher got another Laois point, Cahill converted a free and Brian Duignan stroked over a point to put Offaly ahead for the first time in the 41st minute, 2-11 to 0-16. Duignan missed a great goal chance moments later, doing well to win the ball and manufacture space but then kicking wide from point blank range as Laois forced him out wide.

With Cillian Kiely now lording it at midfield, Offaly went at Laois and the K-K man set up Killian Sampson for a quality score to put Offaly three ahead, 2-14 to 0-17 after 47 minutes. It was Offaly's to lose but Laois dug in and three points in four minutes had them back on level terms by the 51st minute.

Offaly found another gear. Kiely and Cahill drew loud cheers from the home support with quality points as Offaly went back into a three point lead, 2-17 to 0-20 after 56 minutes. Bad defending allowed Patrick Purcell in for a 60th minute Laois goal to level it up but again Offaly responded superbly. Cillian Kiely was brilliantly aware as he tore through the heart of the Laois defence, keeping backs guessing about his intentions before he laid off to Eoghan Cahill who finished superbly.

Offaly couldn't get four points up to ease their nerves but they never allowed Laois score more than two in a row in the closing minutes as they kept that three point gap to the final whistle. Both sides had chances. Cahill missed a crucial free while at the other end, Tomas Keyes got caught in two minds as he raced forward with sight of the goals and lost the ball.

In injury time, Laois needed a goal but Offaly defended resolutely and held on. With such a hectic schedule of games, the chance that Offaly will run out of steam at some stage remains a very live one, however, they should bask in the enjoyment of this win for a couple of days.

Eoghan Cahill was superb in the attack, scoring 2-4 of his 2-11 haul from play but it would have counted for nothing without the defence sticking so manfully to their task. When things were bad in the first half, the character shown by Ciaran Burke and Ben Conneely helped lift the team – the way they stuck hurls and bodies in, made interceptions and knocked Laois forwards off their stride was a real throw back to the 1990s, and Kevin Kinahan and Martin Hanamy in their pomp. You had to admire the way David King, Jason Sampson and Killian Sampson played themselves into it after finding a lot of the first half so challenging as this trio also did their jobs in the second half.

Cillian Kiely was another who ended up highly influential after a less than stellar first half. His handling and touch was not as good as it needed to be in the first half but he was immense in the second half. The attack did find the going tough, apart from Cahill. Adrian Cleary and David Nally had their moments but the attack struggled to click into top gear as a unit. Charlie Mitchell was very close to having a really good game but couldn't quite get away and his finishing was not as clinical as normal while Brian Duignan threw himself about without getting as much ball into his hands as he would have liked, though his role in the second goal was crucial. Paddy Clancy did do well off the bench, scoring a crucial point and helping set up a couple of others.

MATCH ANALYSIS

MAN OF THE MATCH

Eoghan Cahill (Offaly): A superb game by Cahill and a 2-4 haul from play was pivotal to Offaly's win. On a different day, you could make a strong case for Ciaran Burke or Ben Conneely. They oozed character and worked so hard. Even when they couldn't win the ball cleanly and when they did spill the ball, they ensured Laois had to work very hard for everything. However, Cahill's contribution was profound and Offaly could not have won the game without his excellence.

THE SCORERS

Offaly: Eoghan Cahill 2-11 (6f and 1 '65), Joey Keenaghan 1-0, Cillian Kiely 0-3, Killian Sampson, Adrian Cleary, Charlie Mitchell, Brian Duignan and Paddy Clancy 0-1 each.

Laois: Stephen Maher 0-12 (5f and 2 '65s'), Aaron Dunphy 0-4, Aidan Corby 0-3, Patrick Purcell 1-0, Enda Rowland (f), Jack Kelly, Stephen Bergin 0-1 each.

THE TEAMS

OFFALY: Stephen Corcoran (Coolderry); Ben Conneely (St Rynagh's), Ciaran Burke (Durrow), David King (Coolderry); James Nally (Belmont), Jason Sampson (Shinrone), Killian Sampson (Shinrone); Cillian Kiely (Kilcormac-Killoughey), Joey Keenaghan (Clodiagh Gaels); David Nally (Belmont), Jack Clancy (Belmont), Adrian Cleary (Shinrone); Charlie Mitchell (Kilcormac-Killoughey), Brian Duignan (Durrow), Eoghan Cahill (Birr). Subs – Jack Screeney (Kilcormac-Killoughey) for James Nally (32m), Paddy Clancy (Belmont) for Keenaghan (54m), Cathal Kiely (Kilcormac-Killoughey) for Duignan (65m).

LAOIS: Enda Rowland; Fiachra C. Fennell, Padraig Delaney, Donnchadh Hartnett; Ryan Mullaney, Ian Shanahan, Liam O'Connell; Patrick Purcell, Jack Kelly; Aaron Dunphy, Stephen Maher, Aidan Corby; Martin Phelan, James Keyes, Stephen Bergin. Subs – Tomas Keyes for Bergin (40m), Ross King for Kelly (44m), James Duggan for Phelan (57m), Liam Senior for Corby (71m).

Referee – Kevin Jordan (Tipperary).

REFEREE WATCH

A mixed game by Kevin Jordan. Laois couldn't blame him for losing and Offaly wouldn't have been able to either as he was honest and certainly didn't favour either side. However, there were a few times, especially in the first half, when he didn't give Offaly frees for what looked blatant pushes in the back. At the other end, he allowed Laois the advantage for too long on a few occasions before calling it back for a free once it became evident that a score would not emerge. The advantage rule can be a bit of a grey area and there is an element of interpretation in it but on at least a couple of occasion, Laois players went a long way before they were given the free for an earlier foul.

MOMENT OF THE MATCH

Joey Keenaghan's first half goal kept Offaly in it at a stage when they were struggling. It reduced arrears to three points and it was a hugely important intervention by the Clodiagh Gaels man, who worked so honestly and could have got a couple of points but who struggled to get fully up to the pace of the game.

VENUE WATCH

The O'Connor Park pitch was pristine and a nice sized crowd was well hosted.

WHAT'S NEXT

Offaly are away to Kildare next week, though with Newbridge closed, it remains to be seen where this game is played. There have been suggestions that Kildare want it played in their county training grounds Hawkfield. That is a nice venue for small fixtures but it is in no way suitable for a big intercounty championship match. There was 3,800 at the league final between these counties a couple of weeks ago and Hawkfield can't host this type of a crowd.

STATISTICS

Wides: Offaly - 12 (6 in first half); Laois – 13 (7 in first half).

Yellow cards: Offaly – 3 (David King, Joey Keenaghan and Jack Screeney); Laois – 2 (Fiachra C. Fennell and James Keyes).

Red cards: 0.