I was thinking the other day that Offaly GAA has give us some great days out of the past 50 years or so, but what was the best that you were at? There have been a lot of clangers also, what was the worst day out?
Best day out - Outside the '82 AI & 94 AI, for sheer "I'm proud to be a BIFFO" moment was the '97 Leinster Final. When the teams were marching around before the game you could smell 'special' in the air. The game itself was superb and about time we added to the Leinster titles.
Worst day out - I was at the the '89 AI hurling Semi against Antrim, I really wanted the ground to open up under me. The 2000 final wasn't much better either.
A point of note. In 1989, before the back door and opening of Croke Park to so many games, an Offaly team played in Croke Park every Sunday that the stadium was open to the Championship. Every Leinster, every AI semi and final in both codes had an Offaly team in the curtian raiser or main game that year. That was some amount of traveling every Sunday.
Good day, bad day
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Muck Savage
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Lone Shark
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Re: Good day, bad day
I never really travelled that much as a kid, it was only in the later teens that the games started coming thick and fast.
In terms of good days/bad days, starting with the bad ones...
(1) Westmeath 2004 (Football). Couldn't see us losing, so had a huge bet at 5/6 when everyone else was much shorter. Crashed the car on the way up, and eventually saw us losing by a wide to those eejits for the first time in 55 years. There are not words for how miserable I was that day.
(2) Kilkenny 2005 (Hurling) The day we were officially consigned to belonging in tier 2 of the hurling world.
(3) Wexford 2004 (football). After the horror that was Westmeath, the Kildare game had brought a little bit more optimism back to the system, and the loss in the hurling the previous week had sharpened the appetite for this. Cue Podge's rushes of blood, Forde going nuts, savage abuse from the crowd afterwards (worst supporters in Ireland bar none for all round bad-spiritedness) and then the mahoosive drive home to bask in it. Horrible.
(4) Clare 1995 (Hurling) Having spent the run up to the game thinking that we should win with plenty to spare, it just all felt wrong on the day. The lethargy and nervousness among players and fans, that ridiculous shout when Clare entered the field, and the way we stayed barely in front (the worst place to be) all day until Eamonn Taaffe put us out of our misery. I still believe that if that ball was left over the bar, we draw, we eat them alive in the replay and the whole hurling world from then on is changed.
(5) Meath 1998 (Football) Having won the league, it was the only time in living memory that Offaly were on a shortlist of a potential All IReland winners at the start of the year. I was meeting up with a cousin from Ballinabrackey that day, so we tossed a coin for Hill or Canal. He won, and as Offaly Hurlers ran up a 30 odd point win over their Meath counterparts in the first game, the crowd got more and more antsy. My presence up there was not welcome at all, but even though Brian (the cousin) was feeling bad about it all and offering to move, out of stubborn-ness I stayed to the end, as Meath footballers ran all over us. That wasn't fun at all.
Dishonourable mentions to Kildare 2001 when Paddy Russell "rode us" and Mayo 1997 when the rain put rocks in the boots of our free flowing bunch of imps....
And for the good ones....
(1) Clare 1998, part III (Hurling). After all that had gone before, then we had the sunshine, the crowd, and most of all Joe Dooley and Stephen Byrne at either end. If I could relive any day, that would be it....
(2) Clare 1998 part II (Hurling). I consider it the day my love of Offaly GAA teams was consumated - the day us two-left-footers got to give something back. Brendan Ward's fighting words stirring the blood, ould lads climbing fences when at home their wives wouldn't let them stand on a chair to change a light bulb, and meeting basically everyone I knew from home at various parts of the pitch, before sitting there and singing various Offaly songs till about 9pm even though I had a big college exam the next day.
(3) Meath 2000 (Football). The fourth year in a row where we met Meath, and after two scutchings and with Meath favourites for the All Ireland, the odds were well against us. Hugely outnumbered at the ground, but for the whole game it was one of the best performances from the "16th man" on the hill I can ever recall. Pure doggishness from the lads on the field, with Cathal Daly absolutely swallowing Ollie Murphy whole. Pure Biffo.
(4) Meath 1997 (Football). Real underdogs, but yet we knew something was happening. Roy Malone, Peter Brady and Vinnie Claffey carved them open, and we had knocked out the All Ireland champions and set the world alight.
(5) Wexfod 1998 (Hurling) The hoors had knocked us off two years in a row, and seemed to have a sense of divine entitlement that year, what with their pikes and all. For some reason as the game went on, it felt the exact opposite of Clae 1995. They hadn't put us away, and they would pay for it. Enter Johnny Dooley.
Odd not to include the All Ireland finals of 1998 or 1994, but I sometimes think that they tend to get lost amidst the hype. Up to that it's for the team and supporters. For a brief moment I contemplated including the U-21's in Nowlan Park this year. That gives some indication of how great it was to be back at the top table, if only for one day.
In terms of good days/bad days, starting with the bad ones...
(1) Westmeath 2004 (Football). Couldn't see us losing, so had a huge bet at 5/6 when everyone else was much shorter. Crashed the car on the way up, and eventually saw us losing by a wide to those eejits for the first time in 55 years. There are not words for how miserable I was that day.
(2) Kilkenny 2005 (Hurling) The day we were officially consigned to belonging in tier 2 of the hurling world.
(3) Wexford 2004 (football). After the horror that was Westmeath, the Kildare game had brought a little bit more optimism back to the system, and the loss in the hurling the previous week had sharpened the appetite for this. Cue Podge's rushes of blood, Forde going nuts, savage abuse from the crowd afterwards (worst supporters in Ireland bar none for all round bad-spiritedness) and then the mahoosive drive home to bask in it. Horrible.
(4) Clare 1995 (Hurling) Having spent the run up to the game thinking that we should win with plenty to spare, it just all felt wrong on the day. The lethargy and nervousness among players and fans, that ridiculous shout when Clare entered the field, and the way we stayed barely in front (the worst place to be) all day until Eamonn Taaffe put us out of our misery. I still believe that if that ball was left over the bar, we draw, we eat them alive in the replay and the whole hurling world from then on is changed.
(5) Meath 1998 (Football) Having won the league, it was the only time in living memory that Offaly were on a shortlist of a potential All IReland winners at the start of the year. I was meeting up with a cousin from Ballinabrackey that day, so we tossed a coin for Hill or Canal. He won, and as Offaly Hurlers ran up a 30 odd point win over their Meath counterparts in the first game, the crowd got more and more antsy. My presence up there was not welcome at all, but even though Brian (the cousin) was feeling bad about it all and offering to move, out of stubborn-ness I stayed to the end, as Meath footballers ran all over us. That wasn't fun at all.
Dishonourable mentions to Kildare 2001 when Paddy Russell "rode us" and Mayo 1997 when the rain put rocks in the boots of our free flowing bunch of imps....
And for the good ones....
(1) Clare 1998, part III (Hurling). After all that had gone before, then we had the sunshine, the crowd, and most of all Joe Dooley and Stephen Byrne at either end. If I could relive any day, that would be it....
(2) Clare 1998 part II (Hurling). I consider it the day my love of Offaly GAA teams was consumated - the day us two-left-footers got to give something back. Brendan Ward's fighting words stirring the blood, ould lads climbing fences when at home their wives wouldn't let them stand on a chair to change a light bulb, and meeting basically everyone I knew from home at various parts of the pitch, before sitting there and singing various Offaly songs till about 9pm even though I had a big college exam the next day.
(3) Meath 2000 (Football). The fourth year in a row where we met Meath, and after two scutchings and with Meath favourites for the All Ireland, the odds were well against us. Hugely outnumbered at the ground, but for the whole game it was one of the best performances from the "16th man" on the hill I can ever recall. Pure doggishness from the lads on the field, with Cathal Daly absolutely swallowing Ollie Murphy whole. Pure Biffo.
(4) Meath 1997 (Football). Real underdogs, but yet we knew something was happening. Roy Malone, Peter Brady and Vinnie Claffey carved them open, and we had knocked out the All Ireland champions and set the world alight.
(5) Wexfod 1998 (Hurling) The hoors had knocked us off two years in a row, and seemed to have a sense of divine entitlement that year, what with their pikes and all. For some reason as the game went on, it felt the exact opposite of Clae 1995. They hadn't put us away, and they would pay for it. Enter Johnny Dooley.
Odd not to include the All Ireland finals of 1998 or 1994, but I sometimes think that they tend to get lost amidst the hype. Up to that it's for the team and supporters. For a brief moment I contemplated including the U-21's in Nowlan Park this year. That gives some indication of how great it was to be back at the top table, if only for one day.
Kevin Egan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.
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DD
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Re: Good day, bad day
A performance that is often forgotten about but personally for me one of my most enjoyable days in Croker..Lone Shark wrote: (3) Meath 2000 (Football). The fourth year in a row where we met Meath, and after two scutchings and with Meath favourites for the All Ireland, the odds were well against us. Hugely outnumbered at the ground, but for the whole game it was one of the best performances from the "16th man" on the hill I can ever recall. Pure doggishness from the lads on the field, with Cathal Daly absolutely swallowing Ollie Murphy whole. Pure Biffo.
On the bad...
Losing the 2000 All Ireland wouldn't have been so bad if we had given Kilkenny a run for their money but the game was over after 10 minutes and although there was a mini comeback before half time there was never a moment where it looked like we could really threaten them..
We "made" Clare in 1995 when we were the best team in the country but at least we had the last laugh knocking them off their perch 3 years later
Re: Good day, bad day
[b]Best [/b]
Football: 82 Final - without reproach
Hurling: Leinster Hurling Final 1995. A serious display of backsmanship and unreal skill all around the park given the conditions.
[b]Worst [/b]
Football: Take your pick from the tumbleweed generation of the late 80s to mid 90s.
Hurling: Undoubtedly the 2005 KK hammering.
The 1988 Leinster Minor hurling defeat to KK was a freak result given the dizzy heights of 86, 87 and 89. I was about 11 at the time and I remember Adrian Ronan taking a free midway through the second half dead straight in front of the posts at the Hill end. It hit the old score board handing over the Nally Stand and Ronan appeared to have a great laugh about it. One of the Offaly lads who lined out that day told me that he had heard Ronan saying ‘bet ye I can hit the scoreboard’ to the other KK lads.
Football: 82 Final - without reproach
Hurling: Leinster Hurling Final 1995. A serious display of backsmanship and unreal skill all around the park given the conditions.
[b]Worst [/b]
Football: Take your pick from the tumbleweed generation of the late 80s to mid 90s.
Hurling: Undoubtedly the 2005 KK hammering.
The 1988 Leinster Minor hurling defeat to KK was a freak result given the dizzy heights of 86, 87 and 89. I was about 11 at the time and I remember Adrian Ronan taking a free midway through the second half dead straight in front of the posts at the Hill end. It hit the old score board handing over the Nally Stand and Ronan appeared to have a great laugh about it. One of the Offaly lads who lined out that day told me that he had heard Ronan saying ‘bet ye I can hit the scoreboard’ to the other KK lads.