Leinster SF Quarter-finals/ Rhode 1-6 Stradbally 0-6: Poor match, poor scoring, particularly poor second half, and poor Stradbally. From the high of beating champions Portlaoise in their county final comes this lowly exit from the Leinster club football championship.
At least the Rhode supporters won't feel this quarter-final was poor value for money. What did provide the edge to the game was Rhode's clear determination to make amends for last year, when then Laois champions Portlaoise inflicted a 15-point drubbing on the same pitch and same stage of the championship.
Clearly Rhode have built on that defeat, knowing they must be better than that. They were a little lucky they didn't meet a stronger team than Stradbally yesterday, because it was far from the perfect performance. But they will take on Dublin champions Kilmacud Crokes next Sunday with nothing to fear, and nothing to lose. Offaly teams, in that situation, are usually at their most dangerous.
Those who feel Stadbally were definitely lucky to see off Portlaoise in the county final will find justification here. Their forwards rarely operated in any sort of cohesive manner, and without the tireless work of Colm Begley and Gary Kavanagh their resistance to Rhode would have been even more futile.
Begley now leaves to take up a rookie contract with the Brisbane Lions in Australia but this wasn't the going away party he had planned.
While they did manage to keep things relatively interesting for the first half, Stradbally's limitations became patently obvious from then on. A decent crowd had assembled on one side of the field, staring directly into the bright winter sunshine (the other side of the field being levelled for construction work). Even in their blindness they could have seen that Rhode didn't have much to worry about.
Scoring was always at a premium, however, and Rhode's only true claim to superiority in that regard came with Niall McNamee's goal on 20 minutes. His brother Alan set him up perfectly with a superb ball from midfield, and all Niall really had to do was turn his man and pick his spot. The finish was impressive nonetheless - and it was the score that ultimately sent them into the semi-final.
Before that they'd slowly built a three-point cushion before Colm Kelly finally sent over Stradbally's opening score on 16 minutes. Pascal Kellaghan was showing well for early ball and hit the first point, followed by a free and a point from Niall McNamee. By the time he added his goal Rhode were up 1-3 to 0-1.
At that point Stradbally were still relatively competitive. Possession swung evenly each way, and both defences were proving a roadblock for their opposition. Kelly managed to increase Stradbally's total with a stunning sideline kick and then a free before the call for the turnaround, which meant the game was still alive and kicking at 1-3 to 0-3.
Unfortunately it didn't stay that way for much longer. Niall McNamee increased his personal total to 1-3 not long after the restart, and from then on Stradbally were chasing in vain. Begley moved to midfield in an effort to increase their tempo, but suddenly Kelly's radar seemed to go askew, while his fellow forwards simply weren't up to much.
Kavanagh chipped in with a point to offer them some hope, but in fact Rhode were all the time increasing their grip on the game. Alan McNamee maintained his excellent form with another solid show at midfield, with Joe Kilmurray (who had added a point after half-time) and Shane Sullivan ensuring the defence didn't give the opposition much room to breathe.
The last 15 minutes was played out with a strong air of inevitability. Stradbally needed a goal, when instead they didn't even get a sniff of one.
Kelly added a second free having sent a couple of previous ones wide, but there was no obvious weakness in the Rhode defence - and anything that came their way from then on was easily handled.
David Hope's free on 51 minutes proved the last score for the Offaly champions, and a better team may well have capitalised on that limitation. Instead Stradbally's wide count mounted to 12, and with that a chance of even a draw gradually evaporated.
Kelly sent his injury-time free straight over the bar rather than play for a goal, and referee Pat Fox called time immediately afterwards. It all made for a rather tame climax.
Rhode though can improve on this. Manager Stephen Darby - who like his brother Seamus was an Offaly substitute in the 1982 All-Ireland final - is slowly getting the best of his players. If there's much more in there then they'll be a tough test for Kilmacud. But they may need to double that 1-6.
RHODE: C Masterson; M Cassidy, S Sullivan, B Darby; J Kilmurray (0-1), D Bannon, E Byrne; R Malone, A McNamee; M Cole, P Sullivan, D Kellaghan; P Kellaghan (0-1), D Hope (0-1, a free), N McNamee (1-3, one free). Subs: G Hickey for P Sullivan (52 mins), N Darby for Kellaghan (60 mins).
STRADBALLY: D Maher; D Dunne, P Begley, S Lawler; J Kavanagh, E Delaney, C Begley; D McEvoy, D Mulhall; P Langton, G Kavanagh (0-1), J Donoghue; D Murphy, C Kelly (0-5, three frees, one sideline), J Kavanagh. Subs: B Mortimer for Mulhall (3 mins, inj), C Brady for Dunne (23 mins), D Delaney for Donahoe (39 mins), D Beale for J Kavanagh (55 mins).
Referee: P Fox (Westmeath).
