What will some key Offaly GAA figures want from Santa Claus?

This is a time of year when there is very little going on in the world of Offaly GAA, so rather than get all nostalgic reminiscing about the year gone by, instead let"s enter into the festive spirit and speculate about what might feature on the Christmas wish lists of the main characters on the Offaly GAA scene! Santa has brought woes rather than Wiis to the local scene in recent years, but one could never lose faith in the potential of the big man - so let"s see what he might bring to a few of those who have made their lists and checked them twice. Richie Connor - the emergence of a few "competitive" defenders After the abysmal championship season that the Offaly senior footballers put in, it would be all too easy to say that help is needed in pretty much every area of the field. However, the truism that forwards win games and defenders win championships applies in Gaelic football as much as in any other sport, and Westmeath proved last year that a competitive defensive unit can go a long way towards making an average team very difficult to beat. Colm O"Rourke, either in his role as Sunday Game analyst or as columnist for the Sunday Independent, occasionally speaks of the evening where he and a few other former footballing legends sat around a few drinks and went about picking their team of the hardiest men to play inter-county football. The story goes that the selection process had to be abandoned after only seven jerseys were filled because one (un-named) Offaly man in the group was becoming somewhat slighted that the Faithful County had filled five of the seven positions. Whether or not this bout of Biffo-bashing actually took place is something that only Colm and his companions could confirm, - however, it cannot be denied that there is a strong track record within this county of footballers who 'stood their ground' robustly, so to speak. In light of the new yellow card rule and the more rigorous refereeing of the modern day, it"s perhaps a bridge too far to suggest a return to the day when backs were backs and forwards were terrified, but reverting to a policy of picking defenders that exist first and foremost to stop opposition scores might be no harm. To take the team that started against Down as an example: the full-back that day plays at midfield for his club, as does the starting centre-back, on occasion. Both wing-backs are equally comfortable in the forward line, while the left corner-back made his name as a rampaging attacking wing-back. Now if you have five defenders who are all adapting to more defensive roles than they are accustomed to, it"s perhaps not as surprising as all that when such a massive total is conceded. This is a somewhat simplistic analysis certainly, but a return to a policy of picking defenders who live to mark rather than to burst forward and score themselves, certainly in the 2, 3, 4 and 6 jerseys at least, might be a positive step. Joe Dooley - the continued development of his team The senior hurlers were undoubtedly the good news story of the year, despite their relegation and customary collapse against Kilkenny. The triumph in the Gaelic Grounds against last year"s All-Ireland finalists was the best result for the county since the 2000 All Ireland semi-final against Cork, and this was followed up by a battling performance and honourable defeat to Waterford. The challenge for 2009 will be to harness that potential and to ensure that the players can handle the added pressure that increased expectation will bring - no easy task with such a young panel. That increased expectation will also be manifested in the heightened level of respect that will be shown to Offaly by opponents - ruling out the possibility of any more big wins coming by means of ambush. The increased physicality in hurling in recent years has been one aspect where Offaly teams have really struggled to keep pace. With no shortage of skill and enthusiasm in his ranks, Joe Dooley must now work to ensure that his players can stand toe to toe with the other mid tier counties in that regard, thus taking the county another step closer to the top table. Andy Gallagher - a balanced budget in 2009 & new revenue streams The position of county board treasurer is becoming increasingly difficult in every county, with heightened player expectations and extended championship seasons putting huge pressure on resources - resources which are much less plentiful in the current economic environment. However, with the safety net of a new contract with Carroll Cuisine in place and no extensive debts, at least not on the scale of some other counties, Offaly are in a healthy position if they can seize any of the countless opportunities that present themselves. The following are just some of the options that should be looked at: (1) The provision of a supporters" shop in O"Connor Park, to be opened on match days and perhaps for selected shopping hours, such as on Saturday afternoon. (2) The release of at least one if not two additional jerseys for general sale. The 1982 model is always popular and ridiculously difficult to find, while a similar model to that but with black instead of white would be quite fashionable and work well with the red logo of the sponsors. (3) The marketing of Offaly jerseys at airports and tourist locations. Offaly jerseys are uniquely popular abroad and as souvenirs due to the usage of the Irish colours, a golden opportunity which has been woefully underexploited. (4) The offering of old programmes for download on the Offaly website. It would be relatively easy to scan in programmes from recent years - indeed many from the last decade at least are probably still held on file in pdf format. Offering these online at €1 per download would appeal to supporters and collectors alike and could be a quite lucrative revenue stream. Offaly supporters - the patience to wait for better times It"s been a long and lean decade, the famine made all the more painful by the bountiful 1990 to 2000 spell which preceded it. It can be difficult to remain 'faithful' when cold and bleak Sundays are spent watching the county losing football matches to Clare or hurling matches to Carlow, but soon, the county"s day will come. Santa mightn"t have room on his sleigh for a Liam McCarthy Cup or a Sam Maguire Cup, but here"s hoping that there are a few bits of silver in there somewhere - and not just in his beard!