Allianz FL Division 4 2013

[jimbob17]

Tough place to go and win and delighted for lads and management given negativity they have endured in last week or so.....Results leave us in a good position and if we can win a few more we can make a final. Might come down to goal difference for 2nsd spot with limerick probably making final in top spot.....

[llkj]

The Cunningham sending off is going to take strong management to handle the situation properly. Luckily, in this instance, we are operating in Div. 4 so not too many national journalists or TV cameras were going to be in Carrick today, so if the allegations are true (of spitting blood into the face of Mulligan) it may not get as much attention as if it happened in Croker today. Not that I'm trying to get it swept under the carpet, but if I'd rather let the official disciplinary process kick in, rather than a trial by twitter. Let's see what the refs report has to offer before judging, but initial signs do not look good.

I would hope for the following:

1. Cunningham is not vilified without trial until investigations/reports come in.
2. Offaly mgnt and County Board officials take a strong stance on the issue (and make it clear that this is completely out of order and not what the team/county stands for), but also don't leave the lad hang out to dry on his own. He should be advised and mentored here...both from a PR point of view and also from a moral point of view.
3. If he did do it, I hope we don't try to stand behind some technicality or make some appeal. I hope that we take what we deserve, take responsibility for the action, apologise, learn the lesson and move on.

Will be interesting to see how it pans out.... I'm hoping it's not true. But definitely takes the gloss off a good away win, if it is.

[Bord na Mona man]

It was already mentioned on RTE sport yesterday and the tweet re-tweeted by their twitter account.
Obviously such offences are not part if the games if is what is claimed by the Leitrim player.
The referee's report will be key as to what further action will be taken.
And lets not start appealing and dodging like every other county does.
I am curious to know where the blood came from and if there is any connection to the red card incident.

[Lone Shark]

Llkj pretty much sums it up for me - this has to be well handled from now on, and while Peter has to be protected from the massive amount of speculation and guesswork that will surround an incident like this, Offaly also have to be seen to condone any such act and if he is cited in the referee's report, any appeal should be on the basis of doubt around guilt or innocence - not because there's a loophole to be exploited.

It may not seem like it now, least of all to the player involved, but if it turns out that he is guilty of spitting, whether blood is involved or not, the only way this won't stick with him for life is if he's seen to apologise, take whatever punishment is going and learn from it. Even the slightest perception that he "got away with it" - and if guilty, a ban as short as four or even eight weeks would be seen as getting off light - such a perception will harm him and will make it a lot more difficult to shake off the reputation that will come with it. Even as it is, he's going to have to develop a lot of mental strength, very quickly - he's going to hear about this in every game he plays for the next few years.

Offaly stood up and did the right thing before when Ciarán McManus got sent off in a club game and while the done thing in a lot of counties was that such an incident was hushed up and a short suspension imposed, we put in place a fair ban. It was notable too that McManus' disciplinary problems were never really an issue from then on - he became an even better footballer for going through the whole thing and he wasn't seen to have been protected simply because he was a county player. Of course there are several differences here - not least the nature of the alleged offence - but that same ethos has to apply.

[Ahlethimoutwithit]

Lets let the authorities deal with the facts around this. I dont know what happened, or why. None of us went to the match, this is a tricky subject and should not be discussed here.
The chap is young and needs to be dealt with properly. Talk about the game.

[westender]

Hopefully not true!!
No room for this in the game, no matter what age the young lad is.

[brownie]

i didnt go to the match yesterday but credit to the team and management ..a win on the road any time is a good days work...i thought mcdonnells preperation could have been hampered with St Marys in the leinster final on saturday but he seemed to have taken that loss in his stride and had the team up for the game yesterday.alot of work to be done yet in this league and the fact we are not winning home games is still a concern.i dont know much about the cunningham incident but he could be in bother if proven guilty..only weeks after the gaa president condemmed the spitting incident in the north..if he was suspended,does that carry onto club games?. finally, id have my doubts about throwing an extra selector into the mix..could upset alot of work that has been done already and surely there is a good bond there with their travels at home and abroad..a new voice might not earn the respect.where is mid offaly anyway?

[Bord na Mona man]

This was an important win for Offaly. A dull, damp, freezing Sunday afternoon in Leitrim reads like a sequel to Angela's Ashes.
It's rarely a easy place to go and play in, even for higher division opposition.

It's good to see a bit of character in the team also. Things could have spiralled badly after the two previous losses. Being reduced to 14 men and still snatching it is positive. The way Div 4 is going, everyone is taking points off each other. Offaly just have to avoid more slip ups.

With 2 games to go, we'll probably have a scenario where 3 or 4 teams are in with a shout for 2nd place.

[the bare biffo]

I have to be honest and say I only went along to this beacause it was on my doorstep. Last time I went to see Offaly footballers was in Tullamore again Wexford in the championship two years ago. I swore I'd never go again, but..... there I was.

All the changes from the selected team were disappointing, especially Niall not togging out. There were I think three other changes including Shane Sullivan who wasnt listed on the program wearing 6.
By the time it got to the end of the first half I was wondering what in the name of god was I doing there. It was brass monkeys weather and the Offaly performance did nothing to warm you up. The only bright spot was a brilliant long distance point from Brian Connor on the right hand side. Everything Offaly did (not much) seemed to be in slow motion compared to Leitrim, who while they werent up to much either, at least looked like they had an urgency and some idea of what they were trying to do. Leitrim should have taken an open goal chance but blasted it over the bar and that was in the end the losing of the game for them. And to cap it all after the announcer banging on about the hot soup on sale at the back of the stand, I joined a long line only to be told they ran out of paper cups. I was hard pressed to know whether to go back to my seat or head for the gate. I went for the seat.
And to be fair to the lads I am glad I did. They were a different team after the break, much more lively and with some purpose about what they were doing. They racked up 3 unanswered points and looked like they might even pull away. But Leitrim dug in and it was never going to be easy. I was surprised to see Nial coming on after 10 mins of the second half, but he should not have been togged out at all. He was clearly unfit and it seemed wreckless to be putting him at risk. The sending off looked like it was going to sink Offalys day, but they did well to keep Leitrim at bay and definitely deserved their win. Its fair to say neither team will trouble anyone in July.

The Cunningham sending off was the far side of the field from me so I didnt see it clearly. He was fouled first and had his free I couldnt see what he was then red carded for but a good few Leitrim lads with better eysight than mine let out a roar of dirty so snd so just before he walked, so I am assuming the reasons mentioned are correct.

One thing, while it may have been a useful timewasting tactic yesterday, it is rediculous to bring a goalkeeper up for free kicks inside the 20 meter line and straight in front of the posts. Is the forwards confidence so low that they can tap the ball over the bar.

[clubman]

braved the cold yesterday and went up to leitrim,like bare biffo said i could not understand all the changes that were made at the start of the game, 10 minutes in and mcdonnell switched the team all over the field again,don t know it he was trying to confuse leitrim or not but i think he confused the offaly players more as the did not know what to do.this was the worst 35 minutes of football ofally played all year,i was tempted to go home at half time.in the second half offaly were a different team,played with heart and fought for one another,would nearly say if was the best 35 minutes in the league so far.with the results at the weekend it is now in our hands .didnt see the peter incident but an offaly supporter beside me did ,by what he said it doesnt look good and getting a straight red means the ref seen it to.this is going to be a hard lesson for peter and i hope he comes through it a better player.hope this is onward and upwards for offaly.

[fatlad]

Totally agree with clubman, in the first half Offaly were totally disorganised. Big improvement in the second half and in fairness a win which didnt look possible at half time. So the lads deserve great credit for digging this one out. With regard to the Peter incident does anyone know if there is a precedent for the punishment that he might receive?? With Anton gone , Niall still nowhere near fit , a lenghty ban would be another bad blow to this young team.

[Bord na Mona man]

A free cup of team and ham sandwich for all Offaly fans

Who is the only county to have had the same sponsors since the GAA introduced shirt sponsorship back in 1991? That county is Offaly and the sponsor is Carroll's Ham. Twenty two years later Carroll's Ham is still proud sponsors of Offaly GAA County teams and this week it has been announced that the sponsorship is being extended.

To celebrate this achievement and to mark the extension of the sponsorship Carroll's Ham are going to give a complimentary cup of tea and a Carroll's Ham sandwich for all match goers at this Saturday's (March 16th) double bill at O'Connor Park in Tullamore. The Offaly versus Carlow Allianz Football League game has a 2.00pm throw in and it will be preceded by Offaly v Cork in the National Camogie League at 12.15pm. There will also be a free raffle and giveaways on the day.

The official announcement of Carroll's sponsorship renewal and the launch of the new Offaly jersey will get underway after the Offaly versus Carlow match in the 'Club Faithful Supporters Zone' under the stand in O'Connor Park.

The first occasion Offaly wore Carroll's on their jersey was on Sunday, June 30th, 1991 at GAA headquarters Croke Park against Dublin in the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship semi-final. Captained by current Kilcormac/Killoughey manager Danny Owens, Offaly were just after capturing their first ever National Hurling League title.

Offaly County Chairperson Padraig Boland paid tribute to Carroll's Ham for their continued and unwavering support for Offaly GAA. "I am delighted that we will be continuing our very special relationship with Carroll's Ham. For almost a quarter of a century they have been supporting our county teams and the development of our games in county Offaly and I thank them for that. We look forward now to extending that relationship into the future."

Speaking on behalf of Carroll's Ham, Deirdre O'Neill, Marketing Manager said that they were delighted to be extending a partnership with Offaly that is unique within the GAA for its longevity. "At Carroll's Ham we are proud of our roots, we are proud to be from Offaly and having the Carroll's Ham name on the Offaly county shirts has helped us to become a national success story."

Ms O'Neill added, "Today we support 105 local jobs and we are recruiting another 26. Carroll's Ham has built its business supporting local communities, buying local, buying Irish. Supporting the GAA and our own county is right for us and we look forward to continuing that support."

[Bord na Mona man]

Offaly vs. Carlow this Sunday.
If Offaly win and the Limerick vs Tipperary game goes with form (i.e. LK win), then Offaly would move above Tipperary.
Looking at how the Division is panning out, 5 teams tied on 4 points with 4 of the 7 games played, it looks like scoring difference advantage will be worth a point to whoever has the best one.
Interestingly Clare don't play this weekend, but play 3 weeks in a row at the end. They play London at home in the 2nd last game and they might see it as a chance to both win and also boost their score difference.

1 LIMERICK---- 4 4 0 0 41 35 8
2 TIPPERARY-- 4 2 2 0 59 51 4
3 OFFALY------ 4 2 2 0 47 41 4
4 WATERFORD 4 2 2 0 45 42 4
5 CLARE------- 4 2 2 0 51 53 4
6 CARLOW---- 4 2 2 0 51 57 4
7 LEITRIM----- 4 1 3 0 50 49 2
8 LONDON----- 4 1 3 0 44 60 2

[westender]

Offaly vs. Carlow this Sunday.
If Offaly win and the Limerick vs Tipperary game goes with form (i.e. LK win), then Offaly would move above Tipperary.
Looking at how the Division is panning out, 5 teams tied on 4 points with 4 of the 7 games played, it looks like scoring difference advantage will be worth a point to whoever has the best one.
Interestingly Clare don't play this weekend, but play 3 weeks in a row at the end. They play London at home in the 2nd last game and they might see it as a chance to both win and also boost their score difference.

1 LIMERICK---- 4 4 0 0 41 35 8
2 TIPPERARY-- 4 2 2 0 59 51 4
3 OFFALY------ 4 2 2 0 47 41 4
4 WATERFORD 4 2 2 0 45 42 4
5 CLARE------- 4 2 2 0 51 53 4
6 CARLOW---- 4 2 2 0 51 57 4
7 LEITRIM----- 4 1 3 0 50 49 2
8 LONDON----- 4 1 3 0 44 60 2

A Bit more consistency would help.

[Ahlethimoutwithit]

"A Bit more consistency would help."

Strangely enough the wife says the same thing to me on a Friday night!!