Buzz keeps O'Kelly in Offaly job

From the outside looking in it seems like Offaly have deflected all the pressure for Sunday's Leinster football quarter-final.

Opponents Laois displayed the glittering league form, have already impressed in the championship, and this summer also have a certain Mick O'Dwyer on the sideline.

Manager Paul O'Kelly begs to differ. The less pressure on Offaly teams, he says, the greater the expectation from the supporters. And Sunday's trip to Portlaoise is in fact eagerly anticipated. "Anyone who says there is no pressure on Offaly obviously doesn't live in Edenderry," says O'Kelly.

"As Tommy Lyons will tell you it's a great thing to be able to drive over the border and have 40 or 50 miles to go to your home. I drive into the Offaly heartland and live it every day, so I do feel a bit of pressure. But no, I suppose there is a little less overt pressure on us. There is, though, still a great buzz about the championship and we're certainly looking forward to it."

The preparations have been quiet, and after just missing out on league promotion from Division Two Offaly have been largely keeping to themselves. Yet for O'Kelly, who is in his first season of inter-county management, things have more or less gone exactly to plan.

"We have had some time to focus on our individual and team performances over the last four or five weeks, without the constraints of planning for games as well. And I suppose do that work quietly as well.

"We did play challenge games as well against Down, Galway, Tipperary and Carlow. That was an important part of the exercise."

Gradually, however, O'Kelly has been leaving his mark on Offaly football. The panel has substantially changed from a year ago. A third of the current group are new, and have either come in from the under-21 panel or simply come in from the cold.

But there is also the backbone of a very experienced team, with the likes of Finbar Cullen, Vinnie Claffey, Sean Grennan deliberately held back during the league, and instead kept fresh for the championship preparations.

"I suppose if we'd had those sort of players during the league we might have done a little better. But then we wouldn't have got the benefit over the last few weeks when they've been fit and fresh. And they're there to help bring on the next generation.

Still O'Kelly wouldn't trade places with anyone as he prepares for his first championship outing: "Right now you are delighted just to be involved. It's the buzz that's here this week, and the work that we're doing with the players, and the focus on the championship, are all the reasons I'm doing this job."

The team for Sunday shows just two championship debuts in goalkeeper Kevin Meehan and full forward John Reynolds. Cullen and Claffey will both start, while injury ruled out Roy Malone and Barry Mooney and neither have played a part in football training for several weeks. Defender Matt Mitchell only returned this week, while Shane Sullivan was also sidelined for the last month.

OFFALY (SF v Laois): K Meehan; C Daly, G Rafferty, B Mooney; J Kenny, F Cullen, K Slattery; A McNamee, C McManus; C Quinn, N Coughlan, P Mulhare; P Kelleghan, J Reynolds, V Claffey.