Rhode 1-14 Ferbane 0-09
Rhode justified their status as the hottest of pre-match favourites for this year’s Offaly senior football final this afternoon when they easily overcame the challenge of Ferbane and win their 27th senior crown, moving alongside Tullamore at the top of the Faithful County Roll of Honour.
Right from the start Rhode’s pace and precision in moving the ball up the field was a key factor and it took just seven seconds for Niall McNamee to open the scoring for ‘the Village’.
Ferbane’s intensity and physicality around the middle third gave them a solid platform but they needed a goal to energise their challenge and missed out on two opportunities, while at the other end Paul McPadden was able to rattle the twine in the 15th minute.
Rhode converted every single scoring chance they created in the first half and took a 1-9 to 0-3 lead into the dressing room, while Ferbane missed several chances and showed all the nervousness that one might expect from a club appearing in their first county senior final for 19 years.
A magnificent strike from substitute Kevin Nugent set the west Offaly club off with a fine start early in the second half but the slick passing and quick interplay of the Rhode side was always incredibly difficult to stop and points from Niall McNamee, Ruairí McNamee and Anton Sullivan kept the outsiders at bay.
Both sides were denied in their bid to add further goals but Rhode were happy to maintain the status quo, holding a firm line thirty yards from their own goal and restricting Ferbane to nothing more than frees, most of which were well finished by Shane Nally.
Paschal Kelleghan’s side will now advance to the Leinster championship, where their first round fixture will be an away trip to Wexford Park to meet newly crowned Model County champions Gusserane O’Rahilly’s.
Rhode: K Garry; J McPadden, J Kavanagh, E Rigney; N Darby (0-01, free), B Darby, S Sullivan; C McNamee (0-01), A McNamee; S Hannon (0-01), P Sullivan, A Sullivan (0-03); P McPadden (1-01), R McNamee (0-01), N McNamee (0-06).
Subs: C Heavey for S Sullivan (5), G O’Connell for Hannon (44), D Garry for P Sullivan (47), C Heavey for Kavanagh (57), G McNamee for P McPadden (58), E Byrne for R McNamee (60)
Ferbane: K Sammon; C Cahill, J Egan, S Wren; B Grehan, L Fox, J Nally; K McManus, C Egan; O Kelly, S Nally (0-06, frees), D Cox; J Maher (0-01, free), A Keenaghan, J Clancy.
Subs: K Nugent (0-01) for Clancy (22), D Keenaghan for A Keenaghan (35), C Lowry for J Egan (42), A McDonagh (0-01) for J Nally (55)
Referee: F Smyth
