Leinster U-20 hurling championship final 

Offaly 1-18
Dublin 1-15

Paul Keane reports from O’Moore Park, Portlaoise

ANOTHER ADAM Screeney tour de force did the trick for Offaly who are back-to-back Leinster U-20 hurling champions for the first time since 1992.

A nine-point haul this time from the Kilcormac-Killoughey sensation, and 1-1 from Shane Rigney, propelled Leo O’Connor’s group to a landmark win in front of 15,215 — the vast majority of whom were Offaly supporters — in Portlaoise.

Aside from underlining their dominance of the Leinster championship — Offaly beat Dublin twice in the campaign, overcame Kilkenny at the semi-final stage last week and drew with Galway in their group — the Faithful are also through to another All-Ireland final.

Beaten by Cork in last year’s decider, they may very well get the opportunity for redemption on 1 June when they play the winners of this Friday evening’s Munster final between Cork and Tipperary.

Two late pitch invasions by Offaly supporters before the game was even over showed just how much the success meant to the Midlands county.

Dublin, who bounced back from losing both of their group games with wins over Westmeath, Wexford and Galway to reach the decider, burned brightly early on and led by four points before being snuffed out.

Dan Bourke was terrific for Offaly with four points while Dublin’s failure to convert a 40th-minute penalty proved a major turning point.

Dublin set up with a sweeper, Brendan Kenny, in a clear attempt to stifle Screeney’s influence and, initially at least, it worked pretty well.

Kenny boomed over two early long-range scores, 0-3 in total, and Dublin generally began with the same sort of ferocity they’d opened with against Galway in the semi-final.

They hit the stunned westerners hard and early in that game and burst into another decent early lead this time, 0-7 to 0-3.

Diarmaid O Dulaing, their county senior, impressed again for Dublin with two of those points.

Offaly didn’t strike their first point until the 11th minute, from Bourke, and the stadium erupted.

Maybe all that expectation and the huge support unnerved the Offaly players because they didn’t score from play again until the 21st minute.

But it was a score worth waiting for from their fans’ perspective as Rigney blasted to the net to suddenly cut Offaly’s four-point deficit to the minimum, 1-3 to 0-7.

Colin Spain delivered the line ball from beneath the main stand and Rigney, located on the edge of the small square, did brilliantly to catch, turn his man and strike to the net.

The entire Offaly support rose in unison and the roar could probably be heard back in Tullamore.

If the Dublin players weren’t rattled, more power to them.

Screeney tied it up with a point from a free, 1-4 to 0-7, before putting Offaly ahead for the first time with a typically outrageous point from an acute angle on the right.

By the time they broke for half-time, Offaly had outscored Dublin by six points in 11 minutes and led 1-7 to 0-8.

Dublin didn’t so much throw the towel in after that as have it slowly pulled from their grasp. O Dulaing added four more second-half points for Dublin and even had an opportunity to cut the gap to just a point in the 40th minute but had his tame penalty effort saved.

Offaly took full advantage and twisted the knife in the closing 20 minutes with a series of terrific points from Screeney, Conor Doyle, sub Eoin Burke and defender Donal Shirley, much to the delight of their fans.

Offaly scorers: Adam Screeney 0-9 (0-7f), Shane Rigney 1-1, Dan Bourke 0-4 (0-1f), Colin Spain 0-1, Conor Doyle 0-1, Eoin Burke 0-1, Donal Shirley 0-1.

Dublin scorers: Diarmaid O Dulaing 0-6 (0-2 65, 0-2f), Conn Rock 1-0, Neil Hogan 0-3, Brendan Kenny 0-3, David Purcell 0-1, Conal O Riain 0-1, Jamie Conroy 0-1.

OFFALY

1. Liam Hoare (Carrig & Riverstown)

2. Ruairi Kelly (Lusmagh)
3. Ben Miller (Birr)
4. James Mahon (Kilcormac-Killoughey)

7. Ter Guinan (Kilcormac-Killoughey)
6. Brecon Kavanagh (Kilcormac-Killoughey)
5. Donal Shirley (Tubber)

8. Colin Spain (Kilcormac-Killoughey)
9. Cathal King (Carrig & Riverstown)

10. Shane Rigney (St Rynagh’s)
11. Dan Bourke (Durrow – Captain)
12. Conor Doyle (Clara)

13. Alex Kavanagh (Kilcormac-Killoughey)
14. Barry Egan (Clara)
15. Adam Screeney (Kilcormac-Killoughey)

SUBS

17. Leigh Kavanagh (Kilcormac-Killoughey) for Egan (36)
18. Eoin Burke (Coolderry) for A Kavanagh (43)

DUBLIN

1. Kevin Hogan (Faughs)

2. Conor Groarke (Cuala)
3. David Lucey (Kilmacud Crokes)
4. Cathal Kennedy (Lucan Sarsfields)

5. Brendan Kenny (Kilmacud Crokes)

7. Eoin Keys (Kilmacud Crokes)
6. Conor Dolan (St Vincent’s – Captain)
9. Jack Behan (Lucan Sarsfields)

8. Conal O Riain (Kilmacud Crokes)
13. Fionn Murphy (Ballyboden St Endas)

15. Jamie Conroy (Cuala)
11. Diarmaid O Dulaing (Commercials)
10. Ollie Gaffney (Erin’s Isle)

14. Neil Hogan (Castleknock)
12. David Purcell (Kilmacud Crokes)

SUBS

17. Conor Newton (Craobh Chiarain) for Murphy (30+2)
19. Conn Rock (O’Tooles) for Hogan (47)
21. Dylan Bannan (Ballinteer St Johns) for Keys (50)

Referee: Caymon Flynn (Westmeath).