Tailteann tie with Wexford will test resurgent Offaly

By Kevin Egan

Offaly being paired against Wexford in their Tailteann Cup quarter-final on Saturday afternoon (1pm) is either the worst possible draw, or the best possible draw, depending on your perspective.

If the metric by which we assess it is maximising the team’s chances of reaching a semi-final, it was the draw to avoid. Wexford are clearly a better team than either Wicklow or Sligo (the two other sides that could have been drawn against Offaly), and they appear to be at the peak of their powers right now.

John Hegarty has a settled, mature group of players that is particularly strong around the middle third. Liam Coleman is an outstanding fielder, albeit one that is extremely lucky to be eligible to play after he was given a black card rather than a red for what looked like a clear striking offence last weekend.

Niall and Páiric Hughes are powerful strong runners who contribute heavily on the scoreboard, Glen Malone is a freescoring wing-back, and Eoghan Nolan is as good a centre-back as there is in Leinster, albeit he was withdrawn due to injury from their game against Leitrim last Saturday.

Wexford may find it hard to compete in Division Two next year but they earned their place in that lofty company, and taking Down to extra-time in the league final further illustrates their strength.

The other side of that coin is that there is a very strong chance that if Offaly didn’t draw Wexford for this game, they would have met the Model men in the semi-final, where instead of taking them on in Tullamore, the game would likely be played in Croke Park, a venue where Wexford have already played this year.

So from the point of view of winning the Tailteann Cup, which must surely be the only metric for success for this Offaly team for the remainder of the year, taking on Wexford in O’Connor Park gives the players the best chance of taking out a heavyweight rival for this trophy.

Where there is upside for Offaly is close to either goal. Mark Rossiter has been a heavy scorer for Wexford in recent years but he’s not in his best form at the moment, and a 38-year-old Ben Brosnan remains their primary threat close to goal. Likewise in the full back line, there is power and strength, but no obvious candidates to curtail Dylan Hyland and Shane Tierney, if that duo can replicate the form that they showed against Down.

The psychology behind this game is different in that for the first time in this competition there is no safety net in place, but even against a very good opponent, Offaly need to exploit their advantages, namely familiar turf and an extra week’s rest, if they are to secure a trip to Croke Park.