'Old Offaly' showing the way again after win over Meath

"It was real, old Offaly, that's what I would say". The words of Michael Duignan after the Faithful got the better of Meath in Sunday's Leinster SFC quarter-final.

A strong first-half showing, where the midlanders built up a 1-08 to 0-02 advantage come the break, was enough of a cushion to eventually see out the deal at Glenisk O'Connor Park.

A deserved win, and now Offaly stand 70 minutes away from a place in the All-Ireland round-robin phase.

After the county's hurling side had dopped down to the Christy Ring Cup, Michael Duignan felt it was time to act. "It was time to step up and do something about things," he told RTÉ Sport as to the resons why he took on the role of chairperson.

And now being present for a notable win that sees the footballers heading to Croke Park for a date with Louth is another indication that the dark clouds that did hang over the county are further dissipting. "We're a small county, a county that's wants to be competitive in both codes," he added.

In recent times, Duignan can point to further progress under his watch: an All-Ireland U-20 success in football in 2021 and the hurlers reaching last year's All-Ireland minor final, where they agonisingly lost to Tipperary. So far this season, the senior hurlers won promotion back to the league's top flight and are unbeaten in the Joe McDonagh Cup after three games. The highly regarded Johnny Kelly is certainly showing the way as coach.

"The Joe McDonagh is now our All-Ireland and we are looking no further than Kerry the next day. After getting up to Division 1 we know how important it is to stay at that top level. We have a good sprinking of young lads coming through and our minors are showing a lot of promise. It could take three to five years for us to