Ferbane vs Durrow the stand-out game in second round

By Kevin Egan

There was a time when a Tullamore versus Clara contest would be pretty big news, but right now, of the four senior football championship games taking place this weekend, it could be argued that their clash in Glenisk O’Connor Park tonight (Friday) is the least interesting of the four contests slated for the weekend.

Even without a couple of big name players, Tullamore were impressive in their first round clash with Ferbane. Clara, in a nutshell, weren’t where they needed to be in their clash with Durrow, and they’ll need to find a lot of improvement if they’re to cause their neighbours any problems. Even then, we’d still expect Tullamore to have too much.

The same applies, to a lesser extent, to tomorrow’s meeting of Rhode and Shamrocks. The county champions have made life a lot easier for themselves in this group by kicking off with a win over Edenderry, and a depleted Shamrocks side doesn’t look to have anything like the firepower required to score 2-12 or 1-13, as they would need to do to beat Rhode.

Far more interesting is the clash in Clonbullogue between Bracknagh and Edenderry. The Reds will still be favourites here, but this looks like a glorious chance for David Connolly’s side to record a famous victory all the same. Edenderry are misfiring up front, Cian Farrell isn’t back to his best yet, and even a good defensive unit would find the going tough against this Bracknagh attack.

If ever there was a game where control of the kickout battle was vital, this is it. Edenderry have no shortage of power and mobility in the middle third, and if they force Peter Cunningham to spend much of the game tracking back towards his own goal, that will quickly take a toll. Jason Dempsey and Mark Dunne stepping up and taking a firm grip on things in this sector would change the dynamic completely, however, particularly if Edenderry push up to try and curtail short kickout options.

The town side should have a few more options off the bench in a tight finish and it’s hard to see Bracknagh winning with a bit to spare, but this isn’t a foregone conclusion all the same.

In Tubber on Sunday (12.00), arguably the game of the round will take place between Ferbane and Durrow. There are a lot of mitigating factors that excuse Ferbane’s loss to Tullamore, but the fact remains that the west Offaly men came away from that game in Ballycumber empty-handed, and anything less than a win on Sunday will leave them in a sticky final round battle with Clara, who pushed them to the wire last year, and will definitely put relegation on the table.

Strictly on form, Durrow might have the upper hand here, but the red cards shown to Jack Fogarty and Ciarán Burke last time out put them on the back foot a little bit. Any vulnerability down the centre will open doors for Ferbane, particularly if Cathal Flynn and Joe Maher can return to the side, and there’s plenty of scoring options available to manager Ger Rafferty, if they can control the middle third.

Logic says a tight game where suspensions might tip the balance Ferbane’s way, but overall this looks like a game that would be well worth watching and will make for a nice appetiser for the All-Ireland final in the afternoon.

Hurling review

Around the wider hurling world, Kilcormac-Killoughey flexing their muscles by listing 41 players on a teamsheet was the big news from the second round of senior hurling action here in Offaly, though their middle-of-the-road performance against Kinnitty wasn’t exactly the type of win that would have any of their rivals in the race for the Seán Robbins Cup running in fear.

If anything, the race looks tighter now that every team has played at least one game. Shinrone aren’t firing on all cylinders but they have now won two tight games, and edging tight battles isn’t something that Shinrone were known for doing.

St Rynagh’s appear to be moving well and the team that won three titles in a row between 2019 and 2021 hasn’t exactly gone away, and even if their first and only game so far wasn’t exactly inspiring, Belmont are in a good position to secure knockout hurling as well.

Ballinamere’s superiority over Coolderry was masked by a late rally from the south Offaly club and they appear to be in robust health. Birr have two wins on the board despite Eoghan Cahill’s absence, and as the summer goes on, Emmet Nolan will get more hurling done and will get a lot closer to the player he was when he left several years ago, while their guile and experience will come to the fore to a greater degree.

Arguably the only side that looks to be out of contention out of the teams that were considered likely contenders for glory are Coolderry, who now face a huge task to try and stay out of a relegation showdown. It’s shaping up well for some really good games once the knockout stages get underway, and even before then.