Offaly manager Johnny Kelly was a happy man after seeing his side beat Wexford for just the second time in Championship in a quarter of century.
Trailing by five points at the break, having played against a strong breeze in Tullamore, they upped the ante in the second half, and showed the Yellowbellies little mercy after they were reduced to 14 men with the sending off of Conor Foley.
Eoghan Cahill sent the resulting penalty to the net and they drove on from there to eventually win by six points, a result which guarantees them a Leinster Championship place for 2027.
"Delighted to win, first and foremost," he told RTÉ Sport afterwards.
"We had two draws coming into this game today and we hadn't got a win in the Leinster Championship in quite a while.
"There's great relief but obviously we're delighted to get the win and it gives us a chance now, depending on results, to progress in Leinster."
And that's the target now for Offaly, as they look to make a good year into a great one.
If they can beat already relegated Kildare next weekend, they will move to six points. That, coupled with a Dublin win over Kilkenny at the same time would see the Fairthful make it into the top-three in the province, securing them a place in this year's All-Ireland Championship.
It's a big 'if', with the Dubs having downed the Cats once in Championship since the Second World War, but it gives Kelly and his players something to work towards in the week ahead.
"We have to go to Kildare now and we have to try and win that game," he continued.
"That's the nature of the competition. We'll be doing our best to go forward and put in a great performance against a really good Kildare team, who are really well coached.
"Let's see how the results fall that night and if they go our way, we might get into the last three; if not so be it."
Wexford's season will end next week against Galway but the Yellowbellies can't make the top three in the Leinster table. Similarly, they can't be relegated, owing to their victory over Kildare already, so they'll face the Tribesmen with nothing on the line other than pride.
Manager Keith Rossiter spoke to RTÉ Sport afterwards and felt that the game turned on the sending off.
"The black card and penalty - and then to lose Liam right after that - was massive," he said.
"He was hurling really well, he was holding the middle really well. We had to make a couple of substitutions at that stage and it was always going to be a hard battle, playing Offaly in Tullamore with 14 men.
"In fairness the lads just stuck at it. The 14 that were on the field, we made a couple of substitutions, they stuck at it, they gave it everything and just came up short."
Galway's visit to Wexford Park on Sunday will bring to an end season three for Rossiter with his native county.
It's a period that has seen the Yellowbellies emerge from Leinster once as new players have been brought into the squad, while some big players haven't been involved. They reached the 2024 All-Ireland quarter-final, losing out to Clare, but they've failed to negotiate the eastern province in the two years since.
For Rossiter, it's been a frustrating couple of seasons and he acknowledges that his future with Wexford isn't guaranteed.
"It's been heavy going, a lot of transition, blooding a lot of new lads in," he said when reflecting on his reign.
"There's frustration on everyone's behalf when you're trying to do that but you have to bear with them. The future is bright for Wexford as long as they keep young lads coming.
"I have a young family at home, they probably miss daddy a bit. I've a wife that's very patient, so there's going to be a couple of weeks or a couple of months of silence. (There'll be) a couple of days away somewhere and we can have a chat about it then.
"In every job you have a boss, my boss is the county board, chairman John Kenny and the board behind it. We've hurling advisory committees in Wexford as well, so it's an open and honest, frank conversation between all the parties and that's where it's going to be.
"That's what it comes down to, being open and honest and frank behind closed doors and having a good chat about it. All parties need to be on the one page and that's it.
"For 2026 it's been disappointing from a Wexford point of view. Getting a lot of young lads through I'm very happy with, it's just they need to stick at it now.
"Whatever way it goes for 2027 they need to stick at it and wear the jersey with pride."
