THE grapevine had it that Kildare wished to be rid of O'Byrne Cup commitment anyway. If this was true, then Mick O'Dwyer was duly facilitated by a spirited Offaly in the semi-final, before an unusually large crowd of over 7,000 at Newbridge yesterday.

No need for a stewards' inquiry on grounds of not trying either, for Kildare's makeshift side - different in many respects from the side that beat Meath on the previous Sunday - were seen to be very much under the whip from the start.

Hard as though Kildare tried, Offaly - a few short themselves - proved too good, although trainer Tommy Lyons said afterwards that he "would like to see smarter action" from his players with the hand pass.

"Nine players was far too much to introduce for the game," said Mick O'Dwyer, "but I must say, he added, "that Offaly are an exceptionally fit side.

"At the same time," O'Dwyer said, "it would be best to wait until the pitches firm up before making any judgement on this young Offaly side.

Tommy Lyons however, was pleased: "We are coming along very nicely, reaching the quarter-finals of the League has been our aim from the start".

Kildare's momentum towards the quarter-finals of the League will in no way be affected by this defeat according to O'Dwyer, but one player who cannot be considered for action against Donegal next Sunday is Enda Freaney, who was stretchered off seven minutes into the second half.

Offaly stars were many and none more so than Cathal Daly at corner back, Ciaran McManus in midfield, corner forward Peter Brady and Roy Malone, their roving full forward who later retired.

With wind advantage in the first half, the unbeaten division four side went to town and gobbled up any edge in confidence Kildare would have had on them. Their charter was fast, well-constructed and penetrative football, which they deployed admirably.

Most onslaughts on the Kildare goal started with McManus gaining possession.

The forceful and very inspiring midfielder called for a quick line ball pass from Tom Coffey deep into his own half after to minutes. He transferred to Peter Brady, who in turn sent Malone clear for a great goal. It took a timely arrival by Niall Buckley, who cleared off the line, to prevent another goal later on and there were numerous other examples of Kildare escapes.

Brady was often the unlucky one in this respect, but Kildare too, went close to achieving a goal they badly needed, when a foot save by Padraig Kelly denied Leonard Donlon and a late piledriver by Tom Harris was also kept out by Kelly at the expense of a point.

Kildare trailed by 1-8 to 0-3 at the interval but seemed set on rectifying their position with two early points from Glen Ryan and Buckley. That particular retort however, was instantly stamped out: Offaly grabbed back the initiative, regained their composure and effectively put the issue beyond doubt midway through the second half, when McManus drilled home a penalty to give his side a 2-10 to 0-6 lead.

That penalty situation demonstrated the mounting pressures on the Kildare defence, with Brian Fahy only too glad to commit the "professional" foul by pulling down Anthony Kelly. It was significant too, that Kildare had managed their best scoring rate, four points in the closing stages when the match was in very safe keeping for the young Offalymen.

Tyrone star Peter Canavan made his long-awaited comeback yesterday. . . as a defender. Canavan came in as a half-time substitute in Errigal Ciaran's McElduff Cup win over Beragh, and managed to score a point.