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Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Faithful mission for minors
BY MICHAEL GALLAGHER
THINK of Offaly football and immediately a freeze frame of Brian Cowen as an underage football star pops into my cranium.
In more sane moments images of the Faithful County’s minor footballers losing an All-Ireland final to Derry in 1989, Matt Connor’s artistry, Seamus Darby’s wondergoal in 1982 and Eugene McGee’s smart management replace thoughts of the Taoiseach as a slick corner-forward.
On Saturday next the current crop of Offaly minor footballers take to the field against Mayo’s finest with the prize of an All-Ireland semi-final on offer to the winners.
A quick glance at the match-up by the uninitiated indicates that Mayo should win handily. They won their provincial crown with a blistering goal-fest against top-quality opposition and have played in the last two All-Ireland deciders. Offaly were well beaten in the Leinster final by Longford not renowned as one of the great power-houses of Gaelic football but don’t be fooled by these statistics.
This year’s Leinster football championship could certainly qualify for a Weird Science series all of its own. In the opening round on April 17 in Tullamore, Offaly beat Longford 2-19 to 03. That set the losers off on a backdoor adventure, which took in three victories before they faced Kildare in the semi-final. Kildare had ousted Dublin after three games and two sessions of extra-time but they fell to the rejuvenated Longford marauders.
Offaly beat Meath in their semifinal and went into the Leinster final in very confident mood that soon changed. Longford tore into the Faithful boys and despite Offaly dominating possession for long periods they were well beaten on a 0-14 to 0-8 scoreline.
Team manager, Ken Kellaghan, was a very disappointed man in the aftermath but admitted that the better team had gone home with the cup after his side squandered a huge amount of scoring opportunities.
The Midlanders face Mayo in Roscommon next weekend and they’ll be looking to right the wrongs experienced in Croke Park. Kellaghan knows that his team have more potential than they exhibited last time out and has been drilling that into his players.
Offaly have no problem winning possession and have a combative midfield but they found it hard to turn opportunities into scores and that was their undoing. A succession of wides and a stream of balls kicked into the goalie’s arms did little for their cause, but if they correct those faults in time they could be a different proposition against the Green and Red.
Mayo are well aware of the challenge they’ll face. Scouts came back from the Leinster final with news that Offaly were much better than the result suggested. They talked about the ball-winning ability and teamwork of the Faithful boys and are well aware that there will be no easy passage to a national semi-final.
Offaly have been All-Ireland quarter-finalists in four of the last six years and will be looking to move into the role of serious contenders on this occasion, but Mayo will have other ideas.
The Green and Red came through Connacht relatively unscathed. They were run close by Roscommon in the opening round but were never really in trouble once Cillian O’Connor blasted home a first-half goal.
Leitrim were next on the list and they were moved aside in the Markievicz Park semi-final before Galway came calling to Castlebar.
The Maroon and White were in front early in the second half but three goals in five minutes ended the game as a contest and gave Mayo their third title in as many seasons. They now turn their gaze towards the AllIreland series and the elusive prize of a national title.
Unusually for a recent Mayo team they have a happy habit of getting goals. They have a liveliness about them in front of the posts that keeps the opposition on their toes and if they continue to produce the goods they’ll take stopping.
Other departments haven’t been as sparkling and an improvement is needed against the Offaly boys. Midfield was in bother at times against Galway and the management team will expect a better performance from this department next time out.
Defensively the Green and Red have had mixed fortunes. They’ve been very impressive at times but when midfielders and half-backs have also joined the assault they’ve been under pressure but that problem must also be addressed further forward.
In attack Cillian O’Connor and Darren Coen are getting rave reviews but the untiring work of their colleagues doesn’t go unnoticed and Offaly will do well to keep them under control for 60 minutes.
Sean McGarry and Danny Kirby will relish the challenge of getting the upperhand in their midfield battle while the defensive marshals will be looking to be tighter than the cap on a BP oil-well.
Improvement is needed now that the Green and Red are on national duty, and they’re well capable of upping the standard.
Mayo should beat Offaly but the Midlanders can never be overlooked. They have a fighting spirit engrained since birth and will look to make up for their Leinster final collapse by taking out one of the big guns.
Mayo must be wary, but victory must and can be achieved.
Verdict: MAYO
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