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Pat Spillane tips Offaly to reach LSFC. Just watching him on the Sunday game there. I wonder what basis he picks Offaly out of Westmeath, Louth, Wexford, Carlow. It was hardly on our solid league performance!

He seems to be going against conventional wisdom anyway.
Last Sunday on Radio 1's Sunday Sport there was a feature on the Leinster championship with pundits like Tommy Carr, Kevin McStay, Jack O'Shea and a couple of others.
As usual they talked great lengths about Dublin and who might stop them. They went through the other big names like Meath, Kildare, Laois, Louth etc.
They moved on to discuss the outsiders like Westmeath, Wicklow and Longford. There wasn't a mention of Offaly at all in the discussion.
McStay went out on a limb and tipped Wexford to reach the Leinster final and lose to Dublin.

I heard that discussion as well, seems Offaly don't exist to the ''experts''. On last night's overlong Sunday Game,(An hour at most given the substandard football discussed, 5 minutes of a far better Leinster SHC game!)it was all Dublin, bar one vote for Kildare.
Spillane did say Dublin would beat Offaly in a one sided game. Come on Offaly and shove it up Pat's and McStay's rear ends>

We'll have to beat Wexford, Westmeath and Louth to get to a final. The first 2 are 50-50 but Louth would be a tough prospect but still beatable. Still I'd be surprised if we are there on Leinster final day but its the best chance we are ever going to get in terms of the draw itself. What we wouldn't give to get to the final and play the sort of open exciting carefree football of the Leinster final '97? Now I am getting carried away

bracknaghboy wrote:We'll have to beat Wexford, Westmeath and Louth to get to a final. The first 2 are 50-50 but Louth would be a tough prospect but still beatable. Still I'd be surprised if we are there on Leinster final day but its the best chance we are ever going to get in terms of the draw itself. What we wouldn't give to get to the final and play the sort of open exciting carefree football of the Leinster final '97? Now I am getting carried away

No harm in dreaming bracknaghboy, jez wouldn't it be great if they got to a Leinster final this year! God knows we could do with one of the teams to give us something to shout about...

why are lads shocked that we are not talked about as a team that can go anywhere this year, fcuk sake we are a division 3 team
this 4 years and have been brutal in the championship since 2006 and lads wonder why we are not mention as a team to watch
in the leinster race this year give me a break will ye.

townman wrote:why are lads shocked that we are not talked about as a team that can go anywhere this year, fcuk sake we are a division 3 team
this 4 years and have been brutal in the championship since 2006 and lads wonder why we are not mention as a team to watch
in the leinster race this year give me a break will ye.

Yeah but thats the fun part, it'll be all the sweeter when we come out of nowhere and suprise everyone like Roscommon did last year , Again with the pessianisem, you must hate thinking possitive thoughts, hurts the brain and all that.

townman wrote:why are lads shocked that we are not talked about as a team that can go anywhere this year, fcuk sake we are a division 3 team
this 4 years and have been brutal in the championship since 2006 and lads wonder why we are not mention as a team to watch
in the leinster race this year give me a break will ye.

All the teams on Offaly's side of the draw played in Division 3 or 4 this year. So a Division 3 or 4 side will be in this year's Leinster final.

It is unprofessional of broadcasters to not to at least comment on what Offaly's chances are, if nothing else to dismiss them, Offaly finished 1 point behind the Division 3 table toppers, so they at least deserve the courtesy of a five second mention in a 15 minute discussion.

I am not tipping Offaly for anything btw, before you fly off on another tangent...

Unless something changes miraculously, I hope to the divil that Offaly dont end up in a Leinster Final against Dublin. I have no stomach left for anihilation.
A credible run in Leinster, short of the final and a few qualifier wins are needed much more than a Leinster Final anihilation to build on a solid league run this year and push for promotion next year.

And Roscommon didn t entirely come from nowhere. They had a Minor all ireland and a consistent free taker. If Offaly had one or the other they'd be in a much better position.

Pat would go against conventional wisdom alright.

If we had a free taker who could score consistently we would have some hope. We seem to flop big time in this regard when we get as far as championship.
AS a whole we seem to buckle, other teams seem to up their game, but the displays against Kildare & Meath were woeful in the last 2 years. I really hope we get a win against Wexford because I think the lads need to win a championship game of note to give a degree of confidence back after the last number of years.

after looking at the games today
I Dont thnik Kildare or Laois will be going far this year.

Dublin will walk leinster imo.

That Kildare game wasn't that bad. Their shooting is never good, but on another day they would have won that game with a lot more to spare, and even as it was they won a local derby by seven points.

I wouldn't get carried away by the lack of attractiveness of the fixture to a neutral.