Last chance saloon for Offaly camógs as ladies face key game
With their two home games played and no points on the board yet, there’s no safety net for the Offaly camógs when they take on Limerick in the Glen Dimplex All-Ireland senior championship on Saturday.
The Group 2 draw was kind, but that heavy first round defeat to Antrim was a hammer blow, and now two away wins will be needed to get into the knockout places.
Limerick this Saturday and Down on the first weekend in July are difficult fixtures, but ones where a win is plausible. A trip to Kilkenny in between will be a damage limitation exercise.
However, a loss against Limerick will almost certainly mean yet another relegation battle, and given the comparative strength of the other group, that’s a fate that Susan Earner’s side will want to avoid. No pressure then.
Cappamore at 5pm is the time and location, for those who are planning to travel on Saturday.
Meanwhile, for the second time this year, Offaly ladies went into a crucial tie against Leitrim and dug deep to come up with a huge victory. They needed extra-time to prevail at the end of their league semi-final in Kinnegad, and last weekend they made a dreadfully slow start but bounced back well to pick up a deserved victory.
The win sets up what is in effect a straight knockout tie against Wicklow on Sunday afternoon in Clara (2pm), though Offaly do have the safety net of knowing that a draw will be good enough to put them through to a quarter-final.
Realistically, whether it’s Laois or Tyrone who lie in wait in the quarter-finals – that will be determined by the clash of those two championship front runners in Portlaoise at the same time – the chances are that going any further would be a bridge too far for this Offaly group.
Nonetheless, this has already been a very positive year, and it would be no harm to be exposed to a game against the type of opposition that is operating at the top level of the intermediate grade. As the first round contest with Wexford proved, this Offaly panel has the ability to play up to the standard of good opposition.
Sunday represents a great opportunity to give themselves another chance to do just that, so here’s hoping that a big crowd will make their way to Bretland Park for this fixture.
- Kevin Egan