Injuries may leave Offaly exposed

This is a game where youth meets experience. It's a relatively new Cork side against an Offaly team that's been around for most of the decade but there are plenty of reasons why this will be a very close and very hard-fought encounter.

It didn't surprise me that Cork have stuck with the team that beat Clare in the Munster final, especially since they haven't played competitively for the last five weeks. In one sense that can have a bad effect on a team, perhaps leaving them a little match rusty, but it also means they are eager and fresh, with the hunger necessary for an All-Ireland semi-final.

What makes this game so intriguing is that Cork are less formulated in their style of play compared to the more simple and direct pattern of Offaly. The first concern for Cork is that they are going into the All-Ireland semi-final for the first time since 1992. Seven years is a long time. Still, they have looked like a very settled side all summer and have been together since the start of the league.

While they certainly are young, with six of them are under 21, they won't be too overawed because most of them have won minor or under-21 medals of some sort down through the years. Still, Brian Corcoran is the only one who's been through games like this.

The problem, of course, is that they're facing a team which has won two All-Irelands in recent years. Few teams have been through the mill as much as Offaly but they still have to match Cork in terms of hunger and enthusiasm.

The main worry I have over Offaly concerns their injury problems. Both Hubert Rigney and Kevin Martin have been named in the half-back line, but you have to wonder if they can perform at their best. If not, they will have real problems. We have to wait and see what role Rigney will play but his leg injury will surely have some effect on his game. With Martin's injured finger, he can't be 100 per cent effective either.

Rigney has been one of their key players since 1994 but he needs to be fully fit to play the sort of game that he does. As the anchor of the half-back line he has a stabilising effect and if he's on top of his game then very little will get through the middle. In my view he's been the unsung hero of this Offaly side in that he does his job extremely well although nobody really takes any notice.

If he's off form, however, it will greatly upset the half-back line and you have to wonder who can take over at centre back. Brian Whelahan has been tried out there but hasn't looked comfortable. There is also the possibility of putting Joe Errity into the position but the selectors themselves will have the best reading of that. At least the fullback line will be the same but it still leaves some question marks over the Offaly defence.

On the plus side, Joe Dooley is back up front.

How the game will pan out is difficult to assess. Offaly have performed reasonably well this year but have yet to set their game alight. I was particularly disappointed with their performance against Kilkenny. They were unable to raise their game and I was amazed at how easily the Kilkenny forwards came through and took their goals. I would question as well whether Stephen Byrne is as reliable as he was last year.

Cork will look at that Kilkenny match and probably try something similar. Timmy McCarthy's style is to get the ball and run and if he's allowed to do that tomorrow then Offaly are in serious trouble. He will be one of the main target players for Offaly and beside him you have Fergal McCormack at centre forward. Whoever ends up at centre back for Offaly will have a very difficult job with him. Like Kilkenny's John Power, he breaks up the play for his fellow forwards and they like plenty of loose ball.

Neil Ronan, Joe Deane and Ben O'Connor are not the biggest or heaviest forwards but they're all excellent ball players, not too unlike the Kilkenny forwards. Offaly have experienced that already but they'll have to cope more effectively this time. Cork will more than likely play with a two-man full-forward line, with Ronan moving out the field, and that will put extra pressure on the Offaly defence.

There are also some questions for Offaly over the speed of full back Kevin Kinahan, especially since he may have the difficult task of marking Deane. After that, so much will depend on how well John Troy can perform against Diarmuid O'Sullivan. There is a lot of talk of how well Mickey O'Connell has performed for Cork at midfield this summer, but Johnny Pilkington has been doing the same with Offaly. They both pick up a lot of loose ball and convert it into scores from long range.

If Offaly are to win, every player will have to be on top form, or as the saying goes, play on all cylinders. If they depend on a couple of players to see them through, which they have a tendency to do recently, then they'll be in trouble.

I think Cork can make it. Many of these players have done exceptionally well at underage level and this could well be their year. It is another big test for them but they are all ready for it and Offaly must be ready to meet them head on. I hate to think about another draw, but I really can't see too much between these two sides.

If it's wet and slippy tomorrow then that could favour Offaly because the Cork forwards are small and light and probably prefer a dry ball. I've heard it said that Offaly are on the way out, but they are in an All-Ireland semi-final, and that's a lot more than most other teams got this summer. And that to me is certainly far from being on the way out. They were lucky enough with the draw against Antrim and they have an opportunity now to redeem themselves for the display against Kilkenny.

In an interview with Ian O'Riordan