It was far from being a classic. There was too much at stake and the weather didn't help, but the game never flagged as far as pace and determination was concerned. In the long run it seemed that Offaly were a bit overawed by the occasion. They found it difficult to settle down early on and I feel that this may have been because too much was expected of them after their fine performance against Meath. They needed a few early scores to give them a bit of confidence, but when these didn't come and when Mayo kept up the pressure and ran up a lead of six points to nil, their confidence seemed to drain away. They were lucky that Mayo's shooting was so bad or they would have been four or five more points behind before they got their first score after 24 minutes.

A combination of the effectiveness of the Mayo midfield and the performance of the Mayo half-backs, who picked up whatever breaking ball came their way, caused Offaly serious problems. That half-back line of Fergal Costello, James Nallen and Noel Connelly, the captain, really broke the hearts of the Offaly attack. As well as that Mayo were physically stronger. They played fair but hard and Offaly were not able to match them. Most, if not all, of the 50-50 ball went to Mayo because of their strength. They also made better use of the possession, whereas Offaly often wasted theirs with inaccurate passing and some poor handling.

As well as that I felt that Colm McManamon played a very significant part in the match for Mayo. His contribution to the Mayo defensive effort at times was very beneficial and his use of the ball kept Offaly under pressure. He has improved greatly in that facet of the game and it meant that the Offaly defence was not allowed to settle or develop a pattern of play.

The Offaly attack was constantly under threat and harassed in everything they tried to do. They were never allowed to put a series of passes together or to develop any real momentum. Their inside line was getting a very poor supply of the ball, with the result that the Mayo full back line was never seriously troubled.

I felt that Vinny Claffey had the beating of Dermot Flanagan, but he was living off scraps. He was the main Offaly threat up front but he needed a more consistent supply of the ball to make any headway and he did not get it. At the other end of the field I thought Larry Carroll gave Liam McHale far too much room. The Offaly man tightened up after the break, but he never really got on top. At half-time I'm sure Mayo manager John Maughan would have been disappointed. Far too many opportunities were squandered by players shooting from difficult positions when they should have been looking around for colleagues in better positions. Mayo lost several scores that way.

I was impressed by both Maurice Sheridan and Kieran McDonald in the Mayo attack. Sheridan is a much better player than he was last year, although I would have preferred to see a left-footed player taking the frees from the right wing. His injury and lack of full-time training may have been responsible for his waywardness here. He will certainly need watching in the final. For Offaly, free-taker David Reynolds should have done better with the chances he got. At this level you cannot afford to miss these chances.

Mayo's work-rate and support for the man in possession was impressive. Even so, James Horan seems to have lost form from last year, but I thought Pat Fallon and David Heaney did well at midfield. The way the Mayo midfield and defence managed to crowd out the man in possession was great. They had wonderful discipline and were careful not to give away too many frees. It may be that their attack may not score a lot but the defence will not give anything away easily either. They defend in groups and it is very difficult for the opposition to mount attacks when they are constantly being harried and harassed. Whenever Offaly got a score in the second half Mayo concentrated on getting the kick-out and came back to cancel it out.

I believe that they have unearthed a very fine player in Costello, who did a huge amount of work and frequently put the Offaly defence under pressure. Another comparative newcomer, David Heaney, is a good player and his work-rate is extraordinary. I have a feeling that some day Mayo may get their shooting on target and if that happens they will be very hard to beat.

Another player to catch the eye when he came on was Kevin O'Neill. He will probably play a full part in the final. There were doubts about the Mayo full back line before the match but they came through with flying colours. The point about semi-finals is that they have to be won and are sometimes harder to win than finals. Mayo knew what they had to do yesterday and they went about their business with a lot of determination and common sense.

Offaly will have learned a lot and to their credit they were still in the match with 10 minutes to go. They have a lot to be proud of. The final? Mayo and Kerry have a very similar style. They are evenly matched and I believe we could have a marvellous final. Kerry have a greater scoring potential as things stand at the moment but if Mayo work on that facet of their game that could be balanced out.

It could be a classic match.

(In an interview with Sean Kilfeather)