Leinster SHC Round-Robin: Dublin 2-24 Offaly 0-13

Dublin guaranteed their place in the 2019 Leinster Senior Hurling Championship with a big win over Offaly at Parnell Park this afternoon.

The result condemns Offaly to bottom place in the group, with four defeats from their four outings.

Despite a wasteful attack, Dublin led by 1-10 to 0-5 at half time, with Paul Ryan supplying an injury-time goal.

Dublin struck for a second goal early in the second half through Paul Whitely and received another boost when Alan Nolan saved Joe Bergin’s penalty.

With wing backs Shane Barrett and Chris Crummey – who each chipped in with 0-4 – starring in defence, Dublin ran out easy winners by 17 points. None of the forwards who started for Offaly scored from play.

Pat Gilroy’s side will play Galway in their final group game next Saturday evening in Pearse Stadium, though qualification for the Leinster final or the All-Ireland series is out of their reach this season.

Dublin will reflect on narrow defeats to Kilkenny and Wexford in previous rounds which ruined their opportunity to progress from the group.

On this occasion, poor shooting which resulted in 11 wides in the opening 20 minutes, kept Offaly in the hunt until the stroke of half time.

After 35 minutes play, Dublin only led by 0-8 to 0-5, but they hit 1-2 without reply in injury-time to establish an eight point advantage at the break.

It was one-way traffic from then on as the home side pulled further and further ahead.

Scorers for Dublin: Paul Ryan 1-5 (4f) Shane Barrett 0-4, Fiontan McGibb 1-2, Shane Barrett 0-4, Chris Crummey 0-4, Conal Keaney 0-2, Liam Rushe 0-2, Jake Malone 0-2, Cian Boland 0-2, Rian McBride 0-1.

Scorers for Offaly: Joe Bergin 0-4 (4f), Shane Dooley 0-2 (2f) Dan Currams 0-2, Paddy Murphy 0-2, Kevin Dunne 0-1, Eoghan Cahill 0-1 (1f), James Gorman 0-1.

DUBLIN: Alan Nolan; Paddy Smyth, Cian O’Callaghan, Eoghan O’Donnell; Shane Barrett, Sean Moran, Chris Crummey; Rian McBride, Jake Malone; Fiontan McGibb, Conal Keaney, Danny Sutcliffe; Fergal Whitely, Liam Rushe, Paul Ryan. Subs: Cian Boland for Fergal Whitely (51), Tomas Connolly for Rian McBride (55), David Treacy for Conal Keaney (57), Johnny McCaffrey for Fiontan McGibb (63), Paul Winters for Liam Rushe (64)

OFFALY: Eoghan Cahill; Tom Spain, Ben Conneely, David O’Toole Greene; Dermot Shortt, Pat Camon, David King; Dan Currams, Damien Egan; Tommy Geraghty, Colin Egan, Shane Kinsella; Sean Ryan, Conor Mahon, Joe Bergin. Subs: Shane Dooley for Sean Ryan (41), Paddy Murphy for Damien Egan, Ronan Hughes for Colin Egan, Kevin Dunne for Shane Kinsella (all 48), James Gorman for Joe Bergin (55)

Ref: Colm Lyons (Cork)

Leinster Senior Hurling Championship Round-Robin

Round 1: Galway 5-18, Offaly 2-15; Kilkenny 1-24, Dublin 3-16

Round 2: Kilkenny 2-19, Offaly 1-13; Wexford 0-22, Dublin 2-14

Round 3: Wexford 5-24, Offaly 2-9; Galway 1-22, Kilkenny 2-11

Round 4: Galway 1-23 Wexford 0-17; Dublin 2-24 Offaly 0-13

Round 5: Galway v Dublin (9 June); Kilkenny v Wexford (9 June)