Tough Tailteann Cup clash for Offaly as Kildare rematch awaits

by Kevin Egan

As championship draws go, the Offaly footballers ran into a perfect storm on Monday morning. Kildare may have been on a wrong end of things in the two meetings between the neighbours so far, but at that time, Offaly were in flying form, and with a lot of key players at the top of their game.

Since the Meath game, however, Offaly’s collective form has been patchy and a handful of individuals aren’t quite hitting the same high notes. Dylan Hyland, John Furlong, Jordan Hayes, Cathal Flynn and Cillian Bourke were all on song against New York, but there were others who let the game pass them by, while it was notable that once Declan Kelly and Mickey Harte broke with habit and ran the bench, New York hit a purple patch.

It's not that Kildare are significantly better than they were during the league, though the return of Daniel Flynn (4-7 in his last two games) is definitely an upgrade on the injured Darragh Kirwan.During the group stages, Kildare were exactly what people have come to expect. They piled on the punishment when they got a run on poor teams like Leitrim and Tipperary, but Sligo almost came from 15 points down to cause an upset in the final round, and it wasn’t the case the Kildare dialed up a big finish either. Sligo got back to two points adrift and they missed a handful of chances, then committed a ‘three men up’ breach, giving Kildare a desperately needed tapover point at a time when the midfield battle was less of a battle and more of a beatdown.

Nonetheless, even allowing for injuries that could affect Jimmy Hyland and Ben McCormack, Brian Flanagan still has a lot more depth at his disposal, and it’s likely to be a full house in St Conleth’s Park, with a huge crowd coming in to hail their hurlers (fresh from winning the Joe McDonagh Cup), will add to the home advantage aspect.

It’s not beyond Offaly to win, but a lot more will be needed than has been produced in any of the Tailteann Cup games so far. A draw away to Limerick or Fermanagh would have been a more natural stepping stone, ideally with Westmeath going to Newbridge to ensure that one of the two leading contenders would be eliminated, and then in Croke Park, Offaly could once again exploit youth and energy to find a way past the winners. As it stands, it looks like a big ask.

Throw in at Cedral St Conleth's Park, Newbridge, is at 6.30pm on Saturday.