Guinness All-Ireland SHC quarter-final: Antrim 0-12 Offaly (holders) 4-22
From Eamonn O’Hara at Croke Park
THE prince and the pauper.
A far distant cry from any misguided notion resembling a fairytale, yesterday’s grim reminder of disasters past came back to haemorrhage the slim hopes of Antrim producing an AllIreland upset as the craft and guile of champions Offaly left them completely shattered.
Michael Bond’s potential king-makers, in defence of their title, exuded sufficient class to turn this into a tale of abysmal woe. Antrim had nothing to offer, were inept, totally outclassed and produced a performance as bad as any from the bad old days at Croke Park.
A perennial cycle almost of servitude, lost in the shadows of hurling’s aristocracy, Ulster’s challengers never came close to stirring a revival of the romance of 10 years ago. Another grim autopsy, this proved an easy kill for the champions as with the exception of Gary O’Kane and Seamus McMullan, the quality and vigour of Antrim’s resistance was no more than threadbare.
At ease and at will, Offaly went about the business of the ritual undressing of the underdog’s ambitions in style, producing enough power and penetration where it mattered to shut down Antrim at every turn.
Guinness All-Ireland SHC quarter-final: Galway 2-18 Clare 3-15
From Orla Bannon at Croke Park
VINDICATION, if any were needed, of the quarter-final format was provided yesterday by these great neighbours and western rivals, as they treated the masses to an enthralling contest.
A record attendance of 34,112, some six thousand more than attended either of the previous two years quarter-finals, were left dazed by the brilliance of this match, full of skill and endeavour played at a ferocious pace by two hugely committed teams.
The talk by many observers afterwards was that the secondhalf, a free-flowing high-scoring affair, was the best 35 minutes of championship hurling seen at Croke Park in years, if not decades.
Clare stirred themselves to the heights of ‘95 and beyond, proving their character once again when coming back from 2- 13 to 0-10 down with 19 minutes to go to score three goals inside nine minutes.
Credit too to Galway, who made little of the underdog tag and set about wrecking the cosy plan which has seen Leinster and Munster runners-up stroll back into the semi-finals these past two years.
It was a pity that, as the pendulum swung relentlessly this way and that, match referee Padraig Horan took matters into his own hands by deciding a draw was the fairest result and called for the sliotar after only seven seconds of stoppage time.
