Offaly rising.
After a turbulent few weeks for football in the Faithful County, the under-20 side restored a bit of pride as they travelled to Netwatch Dr Cullen Park in the first round of the Leinster Under-20 Championship and stunned Carlow in their own back yard.
And it has been tough going for Offaly in recent weeks. With the senior football management changing hands amid rumours of player unrest, shoddy treatment from the county board, a defeat at the hands of Wicklow, talks of players going on strike, it hasn’t been bloody easy in the Midlands.
But they are a proud bunch and though they haven’t won a Leinster title in more than 20 years they’re still living by the hope that evenings like these will soon transcend to where it matters and that on any given Sunday, Offaly might just rise again.
And just as Offaly only emerged from the jaws of hell to make the journey across Leinster, Carlow headed for their HQ on the blink of greatness.
A historic victory over Kildare in the first round of the Leinster championship here on the weekend will have put plenty of pep in the Scallion Eaters’ step, but Offaly weren’t long cutting them down to size. Cian Johnson wasn’t long cutting them down to size.
In what turned out to be a comfortable victory, the hottest ticket in the whole county was on fire. This shouldn’t be a surprise anymore.
The zippy Ferbane attacker burst onto the scene around this stage last year when, as a whippet of an 18-year-old, he left lads of similar ages to him in his vapours and on their arses all year long, inspiring his club to an Offaly minor title and taking them all the way to an intermediate semi-final too.
The only difference this year is that he’s a whippet of a 19-year-old and now his victims are staring at the back of a green, white and gold jersey. Cian Johnson cut loose for the Offaly seniors in the O’Byrne Cup this year, he left his mark on the League before being denied his dream to play for his county’s senior team in the championship because of the confusing rule book of this new under-20 competition.
And with the Offaly County Board responsible for sending him down the age grades instead of senior, the top brass may be scratching their heads now. Cian Johnson would have made more than a one point swing that fateful day against Wicklow.
On Monday night he wasn’t sparing them just like he wasn’t sparing the Carlow full back. The great white hope scored 1-7 in Offaly’s victory. 1-7 of which came from open play.
And just like the grass is green, Cian Johnson scores, scores and scores.
Offaly would go on to win well, by 2-19 to 1-10.
