Roscommon up tempo in extra-time

Roscommon 1-20

He was not without his own troubles after being forced to discipline disco dancers John Nolan, Paul Noone, and David O'Connor during last week an excellent victory means that Carr can dictate the circumstances under which they might return.

"We will revisit that again. Anybody who is willing to buy into the team ethos and the team discipline, and is willing to put their shoulder to the wheel in a genuine and honest way, of course will be welcome," he said, when asked about the disciplinary action.

"I don't think Roscommon is a county that can afford to do without talent."

Maybe other counties like Armagh, Dublin, Galway and Kerry can do that. "But certainly, it doesn't mean that we are lowering our standards.

"We can't do that. It was proven today that players want discipline, they want leadership, and if that's the way they want it, then that's what they should get."

Roscommon are quickly becoming the story of the qualifiers. There is something about them. Four seasons in one day. They seem fatally incapable of a consistent approach.

Take O'Connor. He was the man who scored the winning goal against Leitrim and yet he wrote himself out of the equation for the next game with a breach of discipline. It's as if every step forward is followed by three back.

The inconsistency mirrors itself in their play. Their two qualifier wins to date, against Cork and Leitrim, have been achieved with the sort of high drama that sees supporters accumulate a decade's wrinkles in a single evening.

On Saturday night, they were out the gap, only to grant Offaly an extra-time lifeline through a Pascal Kelleghan goal.

It's a frustration for their supporters, but they have become accustomed to the white-knuckle ride the post-match scenes of jubilation shows that they are falling in love with this team all over again.

If they could iron out their flaws, they might be a real force. Some of the football they played on Saturday night could hold its own beside anything we have seen in this year's championship.

Frankie Dolan was tremendous. He kicked 12 points. He passed exquisitely. Carr accepted that his team "had to go and win it twice," but he has been emphasising all year that the qualifiers are all about survival.

"Roscommon have shown character over the last few years, and they showed it again today," he said.

The fade-outs are a real worry because one of these days, they won't survive one. Offaly's challenge was fitful, and they even looked surprised themselves when Kelleghan landed the equalising goal just before the end.

And they would have been positively stunned had Ciaran McManus followed up with a point from a 50-yard free. It would have been an injustice.

Extra-time finally saw Roscommon put the game beyond Offaly's reach. Five points in the opening 10 minutes put them 1-18 to 1-14 clear, and Offaly were unable to muster a reply.

One of those points was a Dolan special from a line ball.

At that stage, there was no limit to what he could do. He has never scored as much in a championship game for Roscommon, and it was all the more notable given that he had suffered in the shadow of Cathal Daly in the opening 25 minutes.

"I switched out the field with Gerry Lohan, and I think that worked well," said Dolan. Ten minutes out the field was enough to get Dolan into the game.

By the time he was restored to the full-forward line, his confidence was on an upward trajectory, never to be checked. And Roscommon's grand odyssey continues.

OFFALY: K Meehan; C Daly, G Rafferty, J Hurst; J Kenny, F Cullen 0-1, K Slattery 0-1; C McManus 0-1, J Grennan; C Quinn 0-7 (7f), N Coughlan 0-2, P Mulhare 0-1; J Reynolds (0-1), R Malone, N McNamee 0-1 (f) Subs: B Mooney for P Mulhare, 49; V Claffey for N McNamee, 53; A McNamee for R Malone, 63; S Grennan for J Reynolds, 66; P Kelleghan 1-0 for J Grennan, 68; M Mitchell for F Cullen, 84.

ROSCOMMON: S Curran; R Cox, D Casey, J Whyte; M Beirne, F Grehan, E Towey; S O'Neill 0-2, S Lohan 0-2; G Cox, G Lohan 1-1 (1-0 penalty), D Connellan 0-1; J Dunning, K Mannion 0-1, F Dolan 0-12 (7f, 1 sideline ball.) Subs: G Ahearne replaced dismissed Gary Cox at start of extra-time; B Higgins for S Lohan, 68; J Dunning for G Cox, 84; J Tiernan 0-1 for G Lohan, 68; N Dineen for J Dunning, 48; J Rogers for F Dolan, 90.

Sent off: R Cox, 69; J Grennan, 82.

Ref: M McGrath (Donegal).