Offaly v Longford

[kingscounty]

Best of luck lads

[kingscounty]

Longford 0-19 Offaly 0-15 , great first half scoring 10 points . Hanlon sent off again , he was sent off last weekend in challenge game against Antrim . What's the story with the qualifiers , when is the draw?

[hawksforever]

Draw for the qualifiers will be made after all quarter finals are played.
Not looking forward to it , worst scenario away game against a decent team.
We conceded 19 pts to a team that are in the same division as us and what I seen it could have been more.
Hanlon was very lucky not to have been sent off earlier in the second half .
2 pts up at half time and played well but why in the second half did our genius of a manager play with 13 behind the ball for long periods.
The writing is on the wall for this shower of clueless .......... should have got rid of them aftervthe league.
8 years without a win in Leinster , time now to look at what is best for the future of Offaly football.

[townman]

another shocking no second half show today, but this is no surprise its going on a year or more now
i'd say hand on heart the only county we would beat in football at the moment is kilkenny and they are not in the championship . but lets be fair we didn't expect to win today and they players though the same as in the no second half show. but i am sure we will hear all the bull from the camp we get our head down now for the qualifiers and we have things to work on. the sad thing is the supporters like the players i feel don't give a shit anymore and can't be bother where they stand at this time, and may i add the hurlers are the same and we will see the result of this after june the 7th.

lets be fair after june the 7th offalys championship is over for the year after about 3 weeks its a fcuking shame what is going on in this once proud county and we are at the bottom now and will be
for a very long time but sure our county board think everything is rosie and i am sure the same muppets
will again be on board for 2015 shame on them

[DAF]

We played some good football in the first half but were far too negative in the second half and the full forward line were left completely isolated, also I don't think we won one breaking ball in the second half which is very poor and it had us on the back foot for the whole game.If we play like we did in the first half for a whole game we might be getting somewhere but 35 minute performances aren't good enough to win championship games.

The ref was a disaster.He didn't cross the flags for the disallowed goal which led to a bit of confusion.He booked David Hanlon for his striking incident (which was a clear red) and then went to the linesman on the terrace sides which he should have done before producing the yellow card.Maybe somewhere who has more knowledge of the rules can tell me if the ref is allowed to produce a straight red after already awarding a yellow for the same incident.

[first_touch]

I agree with everything DAF said. Our inability to win breaking ball around the middle was atrocious. We conceded far too much possession to Longford and didn't have the physical power or tackling/defensive nous to win it back or stop Longford attacks.

On the positive side Offaly played some good attacking football and took some fine scores when they did have the ball. That does give us something to build on, especially if we get a favourable draw in the qualifiers. The decision by management to go defensive in the second half, effectively playing with two forwards, was inexplicable. It was crazy seeing Anton Sullivan and Peter Cunningham playing behind their own midfield.

I agree also that the standard of refereeing was very poor and would like to see the rule on giving a straight red immediately after giving yellow for the same incident.

[Bord na Mona man]

Lads, can we avoid have the usual dose of shock and outrage followed by wise guys telling us how Offaly wouldn't bate eggs!
The reality is that Offaly have just been dispatched to Div 4 for the 3rd time in 7 years and all analysis and expectations should be framed within this perspective.
Those who are aghast at what happened today remind me of it suddenly dawning on Fr Dougal that the women on his milk round were in the nip.

The game itself, Offaly started really brightly, attacked surgically with pace and purpose and got kicked some cracking scores.
Longford clearly hadn't a high opinion of the midfielders with their short kickouts and ones directed towards (over) the sideline.
The game didn't turn at half time as seems to be suggested. The biggest turning point was Longford opting to hit their kick outs long and surprising themselves with the amount of ball and breaks they won. For the last 15 minutes of the 1st half and for the rest of the game, Offaly were starved of primary possession. When Longford had the goal disallowed, they were behind 8-4 and they also missed a sitter when Paul Barden shot wide when through on goal. Offaly, despite getting these reprieves were already frazzled and Longford had the upper hand.

The rest of game was Longford making heavy work of reeling in the deficit and trying to build up the lead. Offaly won very kickouts and even less breaks. When Longford moved the ball through the hands Offaly simply couldn't get it off them. Players fell off tackles or just not getting close enough. Offaly were reduced to dragging fouls in many cases.
Also, Offaly dropping men back, or being negative wasn't a problem. When Offaly did manage to win a turnover, we actually looked dangerous on the attack. Counter attacks broke down through bad passes rather than not having enough numbers forwards. In many cases Offaly actually broke forward quicker than Longford could track back.

All said, it was almost shocking that Longford barely got one score ahead of Offaly despite owning the ball for 50 minutes of the game.
Unfortunately Offaly had few game changing options on the bench to try and wrestle the game back and this is another yardstick of where we stand.
It'll take a while for the improvements at underage to start feeding into senior and it'll be a waiting game until then.

[Killeighman]

Who were the subs that were used today?

[Ahlethimoutwithit]

Fair play BNM man, excellent summary.
Unbelievable how as you say when Sheridan went long, any breaks went Longfords way, why though?
Moloney was a statue at centre back, Niall Darby never got a hand on a ball (in a defensive situtation), our half forward line, Anton and Guilfoyle won no breaks either.
So in fairness to McDonnell he pulled players back into the middle in order to try to rectify this, but Longford had too much pace and power.

The ease with which they only had to kick the ball into space for their forwards to win the ball in 5 to 10 yds of space was frightening.

I am at a loss though to understand how we are continuously being hammered for pace,I mean Brian Kavanagh is no speedster and could not be beaten out to a ball.
Yet on the positive, we attacked very well in the first half, and when Longford were messing around with their kick out we could have made even more hay.
Alan Mulhall yet again saved our blushes.
One thing that left me completely raging was the 3 pick ups that we were pinged for when we were in good attacking positions!!! This is pure carelessness, and there seems to be a thinking among some players that if a ball is rolling on the ground, there is no need to put your foot under it? Wrong!
Joe Maher had just to pick, turn and kick a point, (but just execute the pick up properly), and I think there were 2 other instances with no Longford man within 10 yds of the player.
Fitness is undoubtedly an issue with certain players, and a look through the program at half time showed that we had limited options to tighten up at the back.

I have sympathy for the players to a large degree, we are in a difficult period, but we have some good young players developing over the next few years, but the job is to nurture them through over time. Regarding Townmans tirade, I doubt that the CB think all is rosie at all, I would ask you to canvass some guys who you think could make a difference and get them to put their names forward, if not , yes , we will have the same crew as this year.
But I would think that the CB & McDonnell will part ways after this championship. Again, hard to criticise McDonnell as he did apply for the minor job and was offered this, and he was not knocked down by support from the former greats to come on board as selectors.

Pascal is doing a decent job at minor level, but he needs more experience, and our next county manager should be an experienced candidate who can put a strucuture in to steady the ship.
In the meantime, I hope that there is a degree of restraint here in slating players as they are in a difficult postion and they are the ones who are committed to doing the training, dont start bandying around names to come in who at this stage would be even further off the pace.

Finally, I would like to sincerely thank the Longford Co board, and the announcer who gave a glowing review of the career of Greg Hughes prior to the minutes silence, it was a really nice touch, and have to sya that any people we encountered there were really welcoming and humble in their victory. I would like to wish them well agin Wexford.

[Mountain man]

Yesterday's performance was another classic example of the problems which this current management set up have continued to ignore and fail to correct. In the first half Offaly were the better team for the opening 25 minutes. We defended well keeping our shape and closing down any available space well. We drop back our half forward line of Anton Sullivan, Eoin Carroll, and Graham Guilfoyle and midfield of Rurai Allen and Niall Smith who were used as an initial screen to close down any advancing Longford players attacking from their own half. This system was very effective for the first 25 minutes or so as Longford were unable to penetrate the Offaly screen due to a combination of good defending,poor kick passing,lack of imagination, and poor ball retention. Once in possession Offaly were able to counter quickly as Longford brought allot of numbers forward which in turn created space between the midfield sector and the Offaly inside line of Niall Mc Namee and Joe Maher. Offaly used this space well with some accurate kick passing which gave the inside forwards time, and space to do as they wish. This system was not unlike the Donegal system of 2012 which was oh so effective for Jim Mc Guinness. The key to this system is based upon unimaginable stamina, and hitting teams on the counter attack much the same was as Real Madrid have used counter attacks to their advantage in this years champions league semi final against the ponderous build up play of Bayern Munich who were unable to penetrate the Real back line. Offaly were reliant upon Anton Sullivan, Graham Guilfoyle, Peter Cunningham,Eoin Carroll, and the half back line of Brian Darby, Johnny Maloney, and Michael Brazil to counter attack at pace while at the same time ensuring defensive stability. This system is one which I do believe can work and should be explored as a viable option for Offaly going forward. However yesterday was proof of the theory that Offaly are a team which are gym fit but not match fit. Its no surprise that Offaly were dominating in the first twenty to twenty five minutes. Our defence was tight,our counter attacks swift, and with Niall Mc Namee entering form reminiscent of his glory years of the last decade it was no wonder Offaly held a two point lead at half time. Offaly's main problem was their lack of stamina and aerobic fitness which yet again cost them the victory. You could visibly see the Offaly players were out on their feet after the exploits of the opening 25 minutes. The counter attacks which served Offaly Offaly so well were slowing in their intensity and there numbers as the half wore on. Our defence was beginning to cough up space more easily as the physical toll of championship action gradually caught on. For all Offaly's good work and industry Offaly could very well have gone into the break behind had Brain Kavanagh's goal been awarded or if Paul Barden didn't blaze wide soon after. The second half was as predicable as ever. Offaly continued to play with a defensive system which revolved around counter attacking when they had literally no energy left. The second half was very frustrating from a supporters point of view as they were literally watching a painful death in terms of fitness. Longford in the second half were able to create space inside using intelligent running from the inside forward line which Offaly were unable to prevent. Longford also began running at the heart of the Offaly defence whom were unable to keep up with the pace of the Longford attacks. This direct running style was creating overlaps which in turn was leading to scoring chances. The height issue which I alluded to in my pre game post was proven correct in the second half in particular as the aforementioned Brady, and Darby,s were caught out a number of times due to high balls played over the top of Offaly,s blanket which created scoring chances. That's not a criticism of the mentioned players as theirs nothing anybody can do about their inherited genes. Its a management error to place players who lack a few inches in areas where this height difference may be exploited cruelly. Offaly's midfield,as was expected, were poor with Offaly winning virtually none of the breaks during the second half when the game was still in the melting pot from the scoring point of view. In the modern game possession is everything. Teams have adopted a Pep Guardiola approach to possession in the sense that once we have possession of the ball it means our opponents can do nothing with it. Longford for large parts of the game used the short kick out option which ensured that they won over 70 percent of their own kick outs. Offaly on the other hand were persisting with lumping the ball into the middle where its becomes a free for all in the ensuing breaks. Of these breaks Longford were gaining the upper hand which means that overall in terms of possession Longford were winning the midfield battle for possession around 70 to 30 percent. Teams must break even at least in the modern game if they wish to attempt to break even. Offaly's lack of suitable replacements in order to play an attacking style of game was also leading to drastic problems in the second half. When changes were needed Offaly had little to offer in terms of impact players. The failure of the management to have a plan B,C,D, etc is a major concern. Offaly are completely one dimensional and any manager worth their wages will know how to set up against Offaly going into the qualifiers. Drop a sweeper back in front of the Offaly inside line,create space inside the Offaly defence by intelligent running,employ a direct running game,short kick outs,prepare for counter attacking, and above all attack Offaly in the second half when their fitness levels have all but deserted them. The win ratio for Offaly this year now stands at 8 games played, 7 defeats, and one draw. Mc Donnell's championship record is now 3 games, 3 defeats. One honourable performance against Kildare, a white wash by an average Tyrone team, and the most painful of all coming against a Longford side which we will be seeing in division four next year. Mc Donnell will say how Offaly are a team building for the future and while this may be true I for one certainly don't believe Mc Donnell is the person to bring these players forward. Offaly under Mc Donnell have actually regressed in terms of fitness and performance. Many of the young players whom started yesterday don't know what its like to win a Leinster senior championship game, and as the bad results continue to mount these players continue to carry around with them psychological baggage which by now is beginning to effect their confidence and self belief in their own abilities. The time for change is now. These changes must be whole sale starting with the county board, the underage structures,and certainly the senior management. Looks like another short year on the cards for Offaly supporters unless the Offaly minors can continue their winning ways and defeat Dublin,which would ensure a Leinster final place and at least an All Ireland quarter final place. Here's hoping!!

[Bord na Mona man]

Who were the subs that were used today?

Offaly subs used were Niall Geraghty, Ciaran Hurley and Paul McPadden.

[Bord na Mona man]

In the meantime, I hope that there is a degree of restraint here in slating players as they are in a difficult postion and they are the ones who are committed to doing the training, dont start bandying around names to come in who at this stage would be even further off the pace.

Good point. Let's not start lionising the fellas who aren't on the panel.
The players yesterday gave it their best shot and there were plenty of positives. For example, Offaly's conversion of attacks into scores was quite decent.
Longford, although suffering a dip are still a side who beat Mayo in 2010 and perhaps should have beaten Kerry the last time the Kingdom won an All Ireland.
In the end they were more streetwise than Offaly in many areas.

What was disappointing about losing the breaks was that all too often an Offaly player got his hand to ball first, yet Longford came away with it.
It's as if Offaly expected to win the primary possession, whereas Longford were already in break hunting mode. Also, on Offaly's own kickouts, it didn't seem obvious that Offaly players had the inside track on where it was going to land.

[Ahlethimoutwithit]

Fair enough summary Mountain man, but I would tend to disagree a little on Longford winning 70% of their kickouts , they kick 3 to 4 over the sideline,and it was this tactic that kept us in it, for when they went long towrds the end of the half they began to dominate.
I dont think Offaly are any less fit than they were 3 to 4 years ago, I think that the other counties have moved on. I think that McDonnell has put in an effort to try to close the gap on the gym end of things but we are clearly a bit off the pace end of it.

But lets face it, is wholesale changes with the CB going to happen, personally I cant see much happening there.
Underage strucutres, what do you want to happen that is not happening, and be realistic in your expectations.

[Daleamar]

To add to the point of Offaly not winning the kick-outs and us not winning a break.

Longford were not able to compete when both were going to catch it, Smith or Carroll or Guilfoyle or somebody else either caught it or broke it the desired way. Longford changed to short, that didnt work either so then they went long with only trying to break it, which worked a treat for them and Offaly didnt adapt to this. Offaly players were still trying to catch it and the Offaly player that was looking for the break was heading forward expecting (maybe in hope more than expectation) the ball to come to him, but Longford simply broke it the other way, and from what I saw it was as simple as that in most cases.

Longford changed things until they came upon something that worked. Niall Mc was on a tall guy, he won 3 high kicks in a row. They moved a smaller guy on him, let him catch them and tryed to stop him then, a far less dangerous approach as it looked like Mc could get in for a goal.

They could afford to bring on that big unit (no 22 I think) and kicked almost every kick out to him towards the end. At one stage he ran fully from one side to the other and back and caught the kick out in an acre of space. Not a lot Niall Smith could do on a fresh man.

As somebody else posted. We do have some good players, but just not enough, a couple of guys to make an impact and it could have been different with Longford missing a massive amount of chances.

Longford to go no further though either, Wexford should beat them comfortably.

[Daleamar]

On the fitness,

Does anybody think that?

A) Offaly did a lot more running in the first than Longford

B) Longford were happy to let them do that

Pair Offalys over exhuberance on getting forward with Longford happy to let them and Longfords better sub bench, made Longford look a lot fitter.

By over exhuberance I mean 2-3 defenders getting forward at the one time when 1 would do.