Kinnitty and Shinrone can pull off surprise wins this weekend

By Kevin Egan If the scale of the challenge facing the Offaly camogie team this week wasn't clear to anyone, a quick look at the betting odds on offer from Paddy Power bookmakers will give some inclination of what's ahead for them tomorrow afternoon (Saturday). Powers go 1/20 about a win for Wexford and 20/1 the draw, while 15/2 is offered about Offaly taking one more giant step forward and continuing their excellent run of results this summer. The talent and commitment that Offaly have shown so far this year, particularly in their recent games against Kilkenny and Dublin, has been hugely impressive and there is no question but that the squad will travel to Kilkenny in good form and with plenty of self-belief. However this fixture represents a huge step up in class and while Offaly aren't without hope, they would need a lot of luck on the day, in several sectors of the field. If these teams played ten times, Offaly might get one draw and pull off one famous victory over the ten matches. There's no reason why tomorrow's fixture won't be that one game in ten, but neither is it justification for betting at 15/2, sadly. On the club scene this weekend, there is a full card of fixtures, but by far the most significant is the meeting of Kilcormac/Killoughey and Kinnitty, due to throw in at O'Connor Park tomorrow evening at 7pm. Paddy Powers go 2/5 K/K and 2/1 Kinnitty in this one and if both sides were coming into this fixture needing victory just as much as each other, that would be a fair reflection of the form of the two clubs so far. However barring a shock result between Brosna Gaels and Coolderry - and with all due respect to the hurlers of Leamonaghan parish, the Offaly camogie team have a much better chance of an upset than have Brosna Gaels - then K/K are only hurling to try and finish second in the group instead of third. From their perspective, there is no way of knowing if they're even better off for doing that. Kinnitty, on the other hand, need a draw at the very least to have any chance of progression. A win would almost certainly secure their quarter-final place but defeat will result in their elimination, no matter what happens elsewhere. They are hurling to save their season and that's a huge factor in their favour. They finally found some form in their last outing against Shamrocks and while there's a world of difference between hurling Shamrocks and hurling K/K, this match could be very close - 2/1 is a big price. In group 2, the quarter-finalists are already known, so again teams are only playing for placings. Belmont need to beat St Rynagh's to avoid finishing fourth and having to face Coolderry in the quarter-finals, but they've always struggled to get over the line against their neighbours and probably have too much on their plate here. They could very easily have beaten the Banagher men last year but their inability to close out a strong position against Shinrone last time out was disappointing for both Belmont supporters and followers of this column's tips. Rynagh's are 2/5 and that's an accurate assessment of their likelihood of winning. This could, however, be a good time for Shinrone to finally step up and start proving their worth in elite company. A win or a draw would secure first place in the group and what should, in theory, be the easiest possible quarter-final draw. Psychologically, they need this win in a bad way as wins over big teams have been all too rare for the club. Birr haven't hit the high notes at all this year and while we know they have a lot more in the locker, it's far from certain that they'll be sufficiently motivated to produce a big performance here. They'll know that the real battles are further down the road and they've nothing to gain by winning this, except perhaps deflating a potential championship contender. TOP TIPS *Kinnitty to beat Kilcormac/Killoughey (2/1). *Shinrone to beat Birr (2/1).