With their opening fixture in the Leinster senior hurling championship against either Dublin or Wexford now little more than a month away, Offaly are counting the cost of local championship games played over the weekend.
Michael Duignan lasted only 15 minutes for St Rynagh's against Coolderry in Birr on Saturday evening before retiring with a hamstring injury. Worse was to follow in Banagher yesterday when both Johnny Pilkington and Joe Errity were injured playing for Birr against Drumcullen. Errity suffered a recurrence of the shoulder injury which kept him out of action earlier in the year, while Pilkington retired with a broken finger.