Early days but Offaly Senior Hurling Championship begins to take shape

IT is very early days yet and another three rounds have to be played but the Molloy Environmental Systems Senior Hurling Championship is already beginning to take shape.

The second round of games took place last weekend and while results went more or less as expected, there were a couple of standout ones.

Ballinamere's win over Coolderry was scarcely a surprise while a rejuvenated Seir Kieran provided further evidence of their new found health as they ran champions Shinrone very close before just losing out.

In group 1, one of the favourites Kilcormac-Killoughey played their first game after receiving a bye in the first round and they had a comfortable 1-20 to 0-15 win over Kinnitty. Kinnitty battled hard but K-K were never in danger of losing this as they handed senior hurling debuts to two of their brightest young talents, Adam Screeney and Brecon Kavanagh.

Birr continued their solid start with an impressive 3-16 to 1-14 win over Tullamore in group 1.

In group 2, Ballinamere played their first game and had a very important 1-22 to 2-16 win over Coolderry while Shinrone just did enough to hold off Seir Kieran, 1-17 to 2-13. Seir Kieran's two goals came in injury time and it was not quite as close as the scoreline suggests but the underdogs had ample chances over the hour to have drawn or won it – they also finished with fourteen men with centre back Conor Dooley dismissed for a second yellow card in the 51st minute.

So far, the championship has developed according to predictions, particularly in group 1. The top team in each group qualifies for the semi-finals with the next two into two quarter-finals.

It looks like Kilcormac-Killoughey, St Rynagh's and Birr will safely progress out of group 1 with the losers of Tullamore and Kinnitty going into the relegation play off. Tullamore and Kinnitty have both played and lost two games, Birr have two wins from two and Kilcormac-Killoughey and St Rynagh's have one from one. It will be a big shock if Tullamore or Kinnitty throw this group up in the air with a win over one of the big three and it looks like this group is now a contest for top spot and a semi-final place.

Group 2 is shrouded in a lot more doubt. It is the toughest group with champions Shinrone, Ballinamere, Belmont, Coolderry and Seir Kieran all in it. Seir Kieran struggled badly last year and were expected to be whipping boys but they have turned a major corner. They almost shocked Belmont in the first round and were not far off at all against Shinrone last week. Their new found health has thrown a spanner in the works and while it is a big ask for them to make the quarter-finals, they could yet take a scalp.

Seir Kieran are playing with some of the spirit that was a hallmark of their great teams of the past and while a defeat is always a defeat, they will take heart from their first two games.

The opposite could be the case for Coolderry, who have lost their first two. They were only a point off Shinrone in the first game but were overpowered by Ballinamere in the second half, getting two injury time goals to give the full time score a flattering look. It is a transitional period for Coolderry. Many of their greats from the past decade plus have now gone and the greatest of them all, Brian Carroll has been keep in reserve on the bench so far – Carroll is not at full fitness yet but has been a great addition to them coming on in the two games to date.

Coolderry could still get out of the group. There is likely to be fluctuating results in such a tight group and wins from their remaining two games against Seir Kieran and Belmont will give them a chance. That is certainly possible for them but the evidence of the first rounds suggests that they are now in the long shot category of title contenders – Coolderry have a bye in the next round and will be very glad of the chance to breathe and reassess.

Kilcormac-Killoughey, St Rynagh's and Shinrone remain the three favourites while Ballinamere played well enough on Saturday to suggest that they have the capacity to do what Shinrone did last year. Birr are also going very well but their next game against St Rynagh's will tell a lot more.

Round 3 takes place on the weekend of August 4-6 and pairings are:

Group 1

St Rynagh's v Birr; Tullamore v Kilcormac-Killoughey.

Group 2

Belmont v Shinrone; Seir Kieran v Ballinamere.