Saffrons lose out in Extra Time

Leinster Senior Hurling Championship:
Offaly 2-26 Antrim 3-16 (aet)

Offaly will meet Galway in the Semi-Final of the Leinster GAA Hurling Senior Championship after getting the better of Antrim after extra time at Parnell Park on Sunday.

The win was not without its scary moments for Joe Dooley’s side as they needed an injury-time free from the manager’s son Shane to force extra time as Antrim battled commendably for the 70 minutes of normal time.

Ultimately, however, they ran out of steam and Offaly were able to ground them down to advance to the last four.

To their credit though, Antrim began the game at a blistering pace, and led by 1-2 to no score after six minutes, Neil McManus with the goal, courtesy of a Shane McNaughton handpass.

Offaly’s response was emphatic however as points from Derek Molloy, Shane Dooley, Joe Bergin (two) and Rory Hanniffy had them level and by the 17th minute the Faithful County were in a 1-10 to 1-5 lead, Shane Dooley with the goal, a low, hard pull on the sliothar from the right-hand side, while Kevin Brady also got in on the scoring act with two good points.

Three minutes before half-time though, Colm McFaul’s shot through a crowded Offaly goalmouth was adjudged by the umpires to have crossed the line and when McNaughton followed that up with a point the sides were level, 2-8 to 1-11.

Things then got even better for Antrim when Karl McKeegan booted the ball to the net after being played in and, following an exchange of points from Neil McManus and Shane Dooley, Antrim led 3-9 to 1-12 at half-time.

The 8-1 outsiders continued to have the edge in the second half though they rode their luck at times, Offaly having a goal disallowed for an infringement in the parallelogram while Rory Hanniffy’s shot drew a brilliant save from Antrim goalkeeper Gareth McGhee.

Antrim were defending well, absorbing pressure for the most part, though they did go 10 minutes without a score while Offaly continued to eat into the lead, helped by four Dooley points, and with three minutes left it was 3-14 to 1-19 for Antrim, a one-point lead.

A close-in free from McNaughton left Dinny Cahill’s side looking good but Hanniffy cancelled out that score and, in injury time, Dooley converted a free to send the game into extra time, the score 3-15 to 1-21.

In the additional 20 minutes, there was only one team in the game, the fight going out of Antrim having come so close and points from Offaly’s Brian Carroll and Cathal Parlon, allied to a goal from Hanniffy, meant that they moved into a comfortable lead by half-time in extra time, and with Antrim only able to score a solitary point, the Faithful progressed.