Brian Duignan scoring a first half point for Offaly against Antrim in the Allianz Hurling League. Photo by Matt Browne/Sportsfile
Allianz Hurling League Division 1B
Offaly 2-26 Antrim 0-17
By Kevin Egan at Glenisk O'Connor Park
Offaly are firmly in the promotion race in Division 1B of the Allianz Hurling League after they moved to the top of the table, following a comprehensive win over Antrim.
The Faithful County turned a two-point lead after 25 minutes of wind-assisted hurling into a 15-point winning margin by the end, despite conceding the last four points of the match to an Antrim side hoping to glean some crumbs of momentum in advance of what will be a crucial home tie against Waterford in a fortnight.
For Offaly, their trip to Croke Park to take on Dublin on Saturday week has turned into a huge opportunity, with relegation now effectively off the table and lots of confidence in the side on the back of two comfortable wins in a week.
With a fresh breeze blowing from the Park Avenue end of the ground blowing at their backs in the first half, Offaly needed to take a decent lead into the half-time break, but for the majority of the period they were frustrated by a combination of a series of momentum-killing stoppages and some solid defensive play by the Paddy-Burke-led full back line.
Niall O’Connor’s point moved Antrim 0-2 to 0-1 in front early on and even though both sides lost starting corner backs due to injury, the presence of a sweeper or ‘plus one’ on both ends of the field meant that scores didn’t flow too freely.
Brian Duignan was in excellent form from with his frees and Killian Sampson weighed in with two excellent points, but both Duignan and Charlie Mitchell failed to convert goal chances, and 0-9 to 0-7 with 25 minutes played looked like a woefully inadequate lead, given that Antrim would have the wind behind them after half-time.
The most impressive element of Offaly’s performance however was their tackling and defensive energy, and they put Antrim under a world of pressure. Sampson, Cathal King, Colin Spain, James Mahon, Daniel Bourke and Ciarán Burke all found ways to dispossess Antrim players and set up attacks, with Mahon and Sampson combining to overturn Niall O’Connor and set up the long delivery that yielded Dan Ravenhill’s goal on the half hour.
With Antrim on the rack, Offaly quickly tacked on further points that pushed the lead out to double figured by half-time. Ross Ravenhill set up Charlie Mitchell for an excellent point with Sampson also on target, hooking one over off his right shoulder under pressure.
James McNaughton opened the scoring with a free after the interval, but the Shamrocks man struggled with his frees this afternoon, failing to match the heights of his strong performances against Dublin and Westmeath in previous rounds, while all around him, the forward division simply couldn’t gain any traction against the home side.
Meanwhile, Offaly moved through the gears up front with Duignan and Sampson exceptional, while Daniel Bourke, Oisín Kelly and Mitchell also more than played their part in an excellent all-round display for the resurgent Faithful County.
Scorers for Offaly: Brian Duignan 0-12 (9fs, 1 65), Killian Sampson 1-4, Dan Ravenhill 1-2 (1f), Charlie Mitchell 0-4, Daniel Bourke 0-1, Oisín Kelly 0-1, Ross Ravenhill 0-1, Sam Bourke 0-1.
Scorers for Antrim: James McNaughton 0-9 (7fs, 1 65), Keelan Molloy 0-3, Seaan Elliot 0-2, Niall O’Connor 0-1, Scott Walsh 0-1, Joe Maskey 0-1.
Offaly: Mark Troy; James Mahon, Ciarán Burke, Pádraig Cantwell; Ross Ravenhill, Donal Shirley, Jason Sampson; Colin Spain, Cathal King; Oisín Kelly, Daniel Bourke, Killian Sampson; Dan Ravenhill, Charlie Mitchell, Brian Duignan.
Subs: Sam Bourke for Cantwell (16), David Nally for Duignan (24-27, temp), David Nally for K Sampson (60), David King for J Sampson (61), Luke Watkins for Spain (64), DJ McLoughlin for Shirley (68).
Antrim: Ryan Elliot; Gerard Walsh, Paddy Burke, Declan McCloskey; Scott Walsh, Eoghan Campbell, Joe Maskey; Nigel Elliot, Niall O'Connor; Paul Boyle, Keelan Molloy, Niall McKenna; Seaan Elliot, James McNaughton, Conor Johnston.
Subs: Eoin McFerran for Walsh (13), Ryan McCambridge for McKenna (half-time), Conor Boyd for McCloskey (HT), Eoin O’Neill for Boyle (47), Cormac McKeown for Johnston (61)
Referee: Seamus Hynes (Galway).
