Louth stay on track as Ryan blows Offaly away

FORGET the Super 8, Louth are firmly on track for a return to the Top 16.

A blistering first-half display, into the teeth of a gale force breeze in Tullamore, maintained the Reds’ 100 per cent start to the campaign and brought the prospect of a swift return to Division 2 a step closer.

Louth slid straight from the second tier to Division 4 in just two seasons and they were widely tipped for an extended, and painful, stay in the basement grade.

But with six points on the board, two clear of nearest challengers Tipp, a second successive promotion is there for there taking.

Eight points could well prove enough to secure promotion, but with Armagh and Tipperary still to play, 10 is more likely to be the magic number.

But after winning seven of their first eight games in 2017, Colin Kelly will be at pains to stress to his players that they should fear no-one.

They are playing with such confidence and belief in each other and their gameplan, that losing two key men in the buildup to Sunday’s game didn’t cost them a second thought.

Kelly has been marvelling at the depth to his squad since before Christmas, and with Eoin O’Connor and Declan Byrne slotting in to seamlessly replace Jim McEneaney and Andy McDonnell on Sunday, it’s hard to argue.

Shortly after half-time Kelly also introduced 2016 captain Adrian Reid, and much later on ,when the game was virtually won, he was able to throw in Conall McKeever, John Bingham, Derek Crilly, James Califf and last year’s centre-half Darren McMahon.

O’Connor and the brilliant Ryan Burns, in a two-man full forward line, were too hot for Offaly to handle in the opening half.

The former has been used almost exclusively as a midfielder by Kelly and his predecessor Aidan O’Rourke, but arguably has played all his football at full forward for St Patrick’s where his deceptive pace can wreak havoc.

Burns too, gave Offaly captain Sean Pender a torrid time of it, particularly in the second quarter when he plundered two vital goals.

But the big conundrum for Pat Flanagan must have been how Louth were feeding the supply lines to O’Connor, Burns and Paraic Smith.

Understandably, in most other grounds around the country, the half-time scorelines were lob-sided in favour of teams who played with the elements, but utilising a smart, possession game, Louth were far more threatening than Offaly, despite playing into the gale.

The hosts did pick off a few superb long-range scores, primarily through Nigel Dunne, but the play was in Offaly’s defensive third for long stretches of that opening half.

The wind was so strong that Ryan Burns and Tommy Durnin had shots that would normally sail onto the terraces, blow back into play, and when Offaly kicked their fourth point to make it 0-4 to 0-1 on 19 minutes, it seemed Louth would have to put in a serious shift in the second quarter to ensure the game didn’t drift away from them.

But they were coping well with the conditions.

Declan Byrne kicked the opening point after a prolonged spell of keep-ball and another flowing move teed the Mochta’s up for a one-on-one with Ken Garry, who stood up well to save.

The opening goal wasn’t quite as fluid a move, but Louth retained possession in the final third, coaxing a couple of poor decisions from Offaly defenders, which allowed Burns to ghost in behind the cover.

The Hunterstown man would be first pick in a one-on-one every time and he didn’t disappoint, drilling home a low finish via the butt of the near post.

Byrne added a point immediately to edge Louth in front for the first time and the Reds looked more than capable of staying there until half-time.

Offaly briefly wrested the lead back with a brace from Dunne, but Paraic Smith restored parity following another hairy moment in front of the Offaly goal.

Louth continued to press and a when a long-range effort from Derek Maguire inevitably dropped short, Tommy Durnin was there making a nuisance of himself on the edge of the square.

It was hard to tell if he connected with the ball, but his presence certainly created the opportunity for the un-marked Burns to volley home from close range.

Another flowing move down the right created an opening for Smith to make it 2-4 to 0-6 and with Eoin Carroll and Burns trading scores in stoppage time, Louth adjourned with a fourpoint cushion, 2-5 to 0-7.

It was impossible to see a way back for Offaly at that stage, but they too seemed to revel in the conditions, in the third quarter at least.

They responded to Eoin O’Connor opening the second-half scoring with three points on the bounce from Peter Cunningham, Conor McNamee and Bernard Allen, closing the gap to just two, 2-6 to 0-10.

In virtually his first involvement, Adrian Reid hit back with a vital, pressure-relieving score for Louth and on the rare occasions when they did manage to raid forward, Louth made it count with fine lone-range points from Byrne and Tommy Durnin.

Offaly managed to keep the gap at three for a while, but when Burns made it 2-11 to 0-13 with less than 10 minutes of normal-time remaining, it was clear the home side would need a goal.

They never really looked like getting one, and Nigel Dunne’s free, a full 15 minutes before Sean Laverty’s final whistle, proved to be their last score.

Louth played the percentages in the closing minutes, which included almost seven added, but they did add two more points from Burns and O’Connor.

The win leaves the Reds sitting pretty at the summit, but with several teams already scrapping for their lives at the bottom, precious points will be even harder won from here on in.

After netting their first win