Ponderous Offaly carved up

The first thing that has to be said is that Kilkenny deserved to win this match - even though some people, like myself, believed that Offaly would do so. Kilkenny were hungry and they showed it from the start. They were mobile and moved with great purpose.

Offaly seemed to me to be ponderous and some of their passing was terrible. Offaly made a big mistake by withdrawing Michael Duignan out the field to the half-forward line and then driving the ball into the corner where Duignan should have been. It didn't make a lot of sense to me. In the event Tom Hickey was used as a sweeper by Kilkenny and had a field-day as a result.

Kilkenny were able to get possession in open spaces and with John Troy not on his game Offaly were unable to build up the pressure to get the goals which they needed. As well as that the Offaly defence looked shaky under the dropping ball. The main reason for that was that Kilkenny made a very shrewd move in bringing John Power back to play at centre forward. I believe that Brian Cody was the man who made that decision and it was a good one. Power is strong and was the linchpin of the Kilkenny attack and people like D J Carey and Charlie Carter work off him. His physical presence was very important to the Kilkenny attack and, in addition, Kilkenny's better first touch saw them gain the advantage on numerous occasions.

With Kilkenny leading by 3-7 to 0-8 at half-time Offaly had to get in and work hard to try to get back into the match. For some reason or other the players did not seem to be focused on the task ahead. There were many occasion of mis-hitting and this was partly due to the fact that Cody had the Kilkenny players trained to force errors in hitting and passing and then to take full advantage. Even so I would have some worries about the Kilkenny defence. But there is nothing that can't be solved.

It was really great to see a new player such as Henry Shevlin play so well in such a high-pressure match. He was helped by the fact that Kilkenny played as a team but Offaly seemed disjointed and seemed to play as individuals. They never controlled the midfield and half-forward line and that is vital if you are to win such matches. They played in spasms while Kilkenny always seemed to know what they were doing. They made several switches from time to time in attack with D J and Charlie Carter playing in a number of positions.

Offaly weren't helped by the fact that Joe Dooley retired injured, but the fact is that the Offaly attack failed to get a goal. Their goal-scorer, Johnny Pilkington, is a midfielder.

It could be said that this was not a great match but there is so much tension that you can never expect a perfect match. I thought Offaly looked nervous before the match when they were waiting to be introduced to the President, Mary McAleese. Kilkenny looked far more relaxed at that stage, and throughout the game.

I am not sure whether the "backdoor" system might have an effect on teams. Maybe with five minutes to go and facing a substantial lead players might say think: "It doesn't matter. We're still there." Everyone wants to win a provincial final - but it is the All-Ireland that really counts. Kilkenny surprised me with their mobility and great skill. It has to be admitted that hurling is in very good heart right now and I believe that television has helped lift the profile of the game onto a new plain.

I fancy that Kilkenny will now be favourites to win the All-Ireland. Scoring five goals in a match like this will be a warning to the other teams. They are very fit, mobile and skilful and all of that will stand to them in the rest of the championship.

In an interview with Sean Kilfeather