Offaly 2-13 Clare 1-18TWO LATE points by substitutes Barry Nugent and Brendan Buglar earned Clare victory over Offaly at a sparsely attended O'Connor Park yesterday.
Offaly having picked up just one point from their five matches, relegation was a foregone conclusion for them, even with the inclusion of two of their Birr contingent - David Franks and Paul Cleary - and the presence of three others on the bench.
The game may have lacked top-class quality, but a fluctuating scoring pattern kept interest kindled. Apart from an opening burst by Clare that saw them race into a 1-2 to 0-1 lead after nine minutes, there were never more than three points dividing the sides, which were deadlocked eight times.
Offaly's commitment was highly commendable. Indeed, had their finishing been a little more accurate - they registered 13 wides - they might well have given Joe Dooley a first managerial victory. They can now focus their attention on the championship, in which they meet Laois on May 25th.
For the second week in succession Offaly made matters difficult for themselves by conceding an early goal, for the game was only three minutes in progress when Mark Flaherty rattled Damien Kilmartin's net from a 30-metre, daisy-cutting free. The corner forward added two points from frees, Offaly's only reply coming from James Gorman.
The home side settled thereafter, with Brian Carroll in fine form; the Coolderry clubman struck 1-4 between the 10th and 18th minutes, when Niall Gilligan's point was Clare's only reply.
Points were swapped until just on half-time when Ger Healion's centre from the left was swept past Philip Brennan by James Gorman for a goal that gave Offaly a 2-8 to 1-9 interval lead that was not undeserved.
Whatever manager Michael McNamara said in the dressing-room during the break proved effective, for Clare resumed in a far more determined mood, four unanswered points turning a two-point deficit into a two-point lead.
From that almost to the end it was nip and tuck, until that brace of late points tipped the scales in favour of the winners.
CLARE:P Brennan; T Keogh, F Lohan, G O'Grady; P Donlon, C Plunkett, T Holland; D Barrett, C Lynch; J Clancy, C Lafferty, D O'Rourke (0-4); N Gilligan (0-2), F Lynch (0-1), M Flaherty (1-9, six frees, one 65). Subs. B Buglar (0-1)for C Lynch (21 mins), D Clancy for Holland (55 mins), B Nugent (0-1)for F Lynch (57 mins), G Arthur for Barrett (62 mins).
OFFALY:D Kilmartin; C Hernon, J Brady, T Corcoran; D Horan, K Brady, J Bergin (0-4, two frees);C Mahon, D Kenny; D Franks (0-1),P Cleary, J Gorman (1-1); B Carroll (1-7, three frees),G Healion, A Egan. Subs: S Dooley for Egan (42 mins), S Wynne for Mahon (52 mins).
Referee: S Roach(Tipperary).
