Dublin Minor Footballers begin their Electric Ireland Leinster Championship with a win

Image Courtesy Matthew Burke

DUBLIN 3-14 

OFFALY 1-13

Dublin commenced their Electric Ireland Leinster Minor Football Championship Group 2campaign on a positive note as they accounted for Offaly by seven points at a blustery Parnell Park on Tuesday night.  

The Dubs led by 1-7 to 0-5 at the break with Cian Raftery accounting for all bar one point of that tally but it looked a precarious advantage given the gale blowing at their backs in the first-half. 

The visitors reduced their deficit to two points midway through the third quarter but goals by Cian O’Dwyer and Eoghan Madden proved sufficient to see them over the line with a fair degree of comfort. 

The hosts could not have wished for a better start as Raftery gathered possession from the throw-in and after exchanging passes with Calvin Reilly, he swerved a powerful shot beyond the clutches of Ryan Casey from fourteen yards. 

A brilliant two-pointer from the Whitehall Colmcille player pushed the Dubs five points clear with just a minute played before Offaly gradually settled into the encounter with some periods of patient possession. 

That managed to gradually take the sting from the home attack but Raftery’s monopoly on scores continued as he kicked another two-pointer to leave Dublin 1-4 to 0-0 ahead by the 10th minute. 

A Paddy Burns free opened the away account soon after and another in the 13th minute saw Offaly limit the damage on the scoreboard following their nightmare start. 

Casey was called into action when tipping Madden’s shot over the crossbar towards the end of the first quarter but Dublin’s scoring dried up until the almost inevitable figure of Raftery raised his third orange flag with another sublime effort in the 22nd minute. 

Frees at the opposite end by Oliver Goulding and Burns ensured that the visitors remained right in the hunt, especially given the strength of the elements in Dublin’s favour initially and Burns’ fourth free of the half reduced Dublin’s lead to five points by half-time. 

A superb solo score by Mubarak Salami within a minute of the restart stretched the home advantage before Offaly registered their first point from play as Dara Weldon fired over the crossbar in the 32nd minute. 

Raftery once again stamped his class on proceedings with a curling effort into the breeze two minutes later but the visitors were offered hope as James Slevin availed of the breeze to record their first two-pointer. 

A second arrived through Burns in the 39th minute as Offaly’s deficit was reduced to just two points but a counter-attack from the resultant kick-out culminated in O’Dwyer’s precise finish into the bottom corner.

Another Raftery point saw Dublin stretch their lead to six points but from a position of control, they were punished for some sloppy play in the 51st minute as Darragh Stewart netted on the rebound after Goulding’s shot was parried by Jamie Galvin. 

However, they failed to generate any momentum from that score as Dublin struck back immediately with Salami turning provider for Madden to blast home from close range.  

While Goulding replied for Offaly with a two-pointed free, Dublin comfortably saw out the remainder of the contest courtesy of insurance points by lively substitute Andy McDonnell and Jamie Heavey. 

Dublin’s next match will be this coming Tuesday when they face Westmeath in Kinnegad(7.30). 

Scorers – Dublin: C Raftery 1-9 (3 P2); E Madden 1-1; C O’Dwyer 1-0; J Heavey 0-2 (1f); M Salami, A McDonnell 0-1 apiece. Offaly: P Burns 0-6 (4f, 1 P2); D Stewart 1-0; O Goulding 0-3 (1f, 1 F2); D Waldron, J Slevin (P2) 0-2 each;  

Dublin: J Galvin; D Lombard, A Becton, F Carroll; C Doran, J McCaghy, B Doyle; C Raftery, C Wilde; C O’Carroll, M Salami, C Reilly; E Madden, J Heavey, C O’Dwyer. Subs:M Morrison for Wilde (half-time), A Champ for Reilly (42), A McDonnell for Morrison (56).

Offaly: R Casey; C Staunton, O Kenny, J Conlon; J Slevin, P Duffy, S Murrihy; J Carroll, D Stewart; E Daly, D Waldron, J Harvey; O Goulding, P Burns, C Carroll. Subs: R Minnock for Slevin (52), S Monahan for Daly (55). 

Referee: Lee Moore (Kildare).