Offaly moving on up after statement win over Antrim 

Brian Dunigan of Offaly and Eoin McFerran of Antrim. Pic: Andrew Paton/Inpho

Allianz Hurling League Division 1B: Offaly 2-26 Antrim 0-17 

Today was something of a ‘moving day’ in Division 1B of the Allianz League, and Offaly made a clear statement about what direction they’re moving in Tullamore.

Dublin and Waterford remain the clear favourites for promotion but the Faithful County look poised and ready to ask serious questions of the Dubs on Saturday week in Croke Park after they put Antrim to the sword in Tullamore today.

This was despite Antrim scoring the last four points of the contest, and Davy Fitzgerald will be under no illusions about the ground that his team will have to make up in advance of a repeat clash between these two sides in the Leinster championship in May, a contest that many people expect to be an effective relegation decider.

This wasn’t so much a game of two halves as it was a game of three thirds.

For the first 25 minutes, Offaly had the aid of a fresh breeze but 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.

For the 25 after that, Johnny Kelly’s side were utterly dominant, powered by their ability to secure any number of turnovers in the middle third. They took their two-point lead and multiplied it eight-fold, taking all the heat and meaning out of the final third.

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 around the middle, where 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: B Duignan (0-12, 0-9f, 0-1 65), K Sampson (1-4), D Ravenhill (1-2, 0-1f), C Mitchell (0-4), D Bourke (0-1), O Kelly (0-1), R Ravenhill (0-1), S Bourke (0-1).

Scorers for Antrim: J McNaughton (0-9, 0-7f, 0-1 65), K Molloy (0-3), S Elliot (0-2), N O’Connor (0-1), S Walsh (0-1), J Maskey (0-1).

OFFALY: M Troy; J Mahon, C Burke, P Cantwell; R Ravenhill, D Shirley, J Sampson; C Spain, C King; O Kelly, D Bourke, K Sampson; D Ravenhill, C Mitchell, B Duignan.

Subs: S Bourke for Cantwell (16), D Nally for Duignan (24-27, temp), D Nally for K Sampson (60), D King for J Sampson (61), L Watkins for Spain (64), DJ McLoughlin for Shirley (68).

ANTRIM: R Elliot; G Walsh, P Burke, D McCloskey; S Walsh, E Campbell, J Maskey; N Elliot, N O'Connor; P Boyle, K Molloy, N McKenna; S Elliot, J McNaughton, C Johnston.

Subs: E McFerran for Walsh (13), R McCambridge for McKenna (half-time), C Boyd for McCloskey (half-time), E O’Neill for Boyle (47), C McKeown for Johnston (61).

Referee: Seamus Hynes (Galway).