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Maurice Shanahan, the Lismore man who scored 13 points of Waterford total score of 0-21 against Offaly.

Waterford 0-21 Offaly 1-14

Waterford hurlers put their disappointing defeat to Clare behind them with victory away to Offaly in the preliminary round of the qualifiers. In what would have been seen as a tough test of the Deise men’s character, they didn’t exactly pass with flying colours but they were somewhat more comfortable than the scoreline suggests. They can thank Lismore’s Maurice Shanahan in no small part for the victory. Shanahan assumed all the responsibility and ended the game with a total of 13 points, with eight coming from play.

Waterford suffered a disastrous start, as Offaly goaled early through Shane Dooley when the Tullamore man took advantage of sloppy defending. Waterford were back on level terms by the 20th minute and were well on top approaching half-time with Shanahan and Jake Dillon very lively and effective. They led 0-11 to 1-4 at the break but had been aided by a strong wind in that half and natives would have feared the four point lead would not be sufficient, especially given the amount of wides they had hit in the first half.

The signs were worrying for the Munster side in the early stages of the second half as their lead had quickly evaporated by the 45th minute and they were looking at the possibility of being out of the championship in June. To their credit though this never entered their heads and Shanahan and Brian O’Sullivan knocked over points to give them a three point advantage.

The backs, led by Michael ‘Brick’ Walsh, had regained control and Offaly’s half forward line had no real influence for the remainder of the game. The three point lead remained into the dying stages where Shanahan took the pressure off with some well taken scores, as Daniel Currams responded for Offaly. Stephen O’Keeffe in the Waterford goal ensured there was to be no late drama with two great saves and his side saw out the remaining minutes to book their place in the next round of the qualifiers.

It was a well-deserved victory for Michael Ryan’s team at the end of the day and one that should give them confidence going forward. This was an Offaly team that scored four goals against Kilkenny only a few weeks back and were always going to have dominant spells at home in O’Connor Park. Waterford endured those spells admirably and despite hitting a huge amount of wides, still made enough of their attacks to be comfortable. In Maurice Shanahan, Brian O’Sullivan and Jake Dillon they have forwards who look like they are ready to take up the mantle from the recently retired John Mullane.

It is still early days and Clare’s defeat to Cork puts Waterford’s current standing into perspective. Whether they underperformed against the Banner or if they are still a bit away from competing with hurling’s elite remains to be seen.

They now face Westmeath on Saturday as part of a double-header with the Westmeath footballers also in action in Mullingar. If they can keep the home crowd quiet they should have far too much fire power for the Leinster side. Getting over this hurdle will see them only one step away from getting back into the All-Ireland proper and their credentials will once again be tested. For now though all concentration must be on Westmeath and avoiding a shock in Mullingar.

Scorers for Waterford: M Shanahan (0-13/0-5fs), B O’Sullivan (0-3), J Dillon (0-2), K Moran, S O’Sullivan and P Prendergast (0-1 each).

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