Offaly feelgood factor unlikely to be enough to stop Dubs

AFTER years in the doldrums, Offaly’s resurgence has been the undoubted feelgood story of the summer but few expect a fairytale ending against Dublin in tomorrow’s Leinster SFC Final (Croke Park, 4pm, RTÉ 2).

After the huff and puff of their opening win in Longford, Paul Caffrey tweaked his starting 15 for the semi-final against Laois and the results were nothing short of spectacular.

With Bryan Cullen back to the pivotal centre-half slot, the defence looked more watertight than that which almost crumbled in Pearse Park, though how much of that was down to Laois’ fallibility is another question.