GROUP 1
Shinrone
Manager – Paul Keane;
Selectors – Pat Moloney and Eddie Bevans;
Captain – Not picked ;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Long serving defender Darren O'Meara has retired while Adrian Cleary, Conor Doughan, JP Cleary are not available;
New players – None;
Last year – Beaten finalists;
Star player – Killian Sampson;
Key players – Jason Sampson, Dara Maher, Luke Watkins;
Prospects – It is potentially a make or break year for Shinrone and a real test of character for them. They won their first title in 2022 but Kilcormac-Killoughey steam-rolled them in the final last year. They don't want to be one title wonders but that is now a possibility as they have lost a couple to emigration and have a couple with a good bit of mileage up. They are in a tricky group and while they should be able to come out of it, this is no guarantee. They are contenders but it remains to be seen what effect last season's final mauling has on them.
Ballinamere
Manager – Niall Rigney;
Selectors – Pat Cleary, Stephen Ravenhill, Diarmuid Cahill;
Captain – Ciaran Burke;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Gerry Spollen;
New players – Niall Kelly
Last year – Beaten by Shinrone in the semi-final;
Star player – Brian Duignan;
Key players – Ciaran Burke, Dan Bourke, Dan Ravenhill;
Prospects – Youth is on the side of Ballinamere but the clock ticks very quickly and they do need to make further progress this year. Ballinamere got one monkey off their back by making the semi-finals last year and the target is a final this year. Outside of Kilcormac-Killoughey, they have the most talented hurlers in the county. Mark Troy, Ciaran Burke, Ross Ravenhill, Brian Duignan and Dan Bourke are all established Offaly senior hurlers while Sam Bourke and Dan Ravenhill played in the Joe McDonagh Cup campaign this year. With this talent at their disposal, Ballinamere should be second favourites behind Kilcormac-Killoughey but they still have a lot to prove. They haven't progressed quite as much as they could have and there are questions about them. Ballinamere's problem is that they have ten or so hurlers as good as anyone but it is the next five that often determine the winners. Dan Bourke and Dan Ravenhill should be huge for them this year but as a unit, there will be huge scrutiny on Ballinamere this year, both internally and externally. They will continue to push, they will stay trying to do the right thing and some day, this could lead them to the promised land. They certainly have the hurlers to win the Robbins Cup but K-K are ahead of them at the moment – their first priority is to qualify and that is not guaranteed. Ballinamere are capable of beating anyone but they are also capable of bad days. We just have to wait and see with them but they are genuine contenders.
Birr
Manager – Gary Cahill;
Selectors – Paul Cleary, Kevin Donovan;
Captain – Eoghan Cahill;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Rory Carty, Campbell Boyd and Oisin Murphy are abroad;
New players – None;
Last year – Beaten quarter-finalists;
Star player – Eoghan Cahill;
Key players – Barry Harding, Emmet Nolan, Lochlann Quinn;
Prospects – Birr are working so hard in a bid to recapture the glory days. They almost took Shinrone in extra time in a thrilling quarter-final shootout last year and they are desperate to re-emerge as contenders. Qualifying from this group is far from set in stone and with three qualifying, there will be a significant early casualty. Birr could be that but they also have a great chance of emerging. They were very poor in their defeat by Belmont in the Division 1 Hurling League final last Saturday week. They shouldn't be written off on the basis of that and it is all about the championship for them but they do have a point to prove and there will be considerable scrutiny on them in the town. An early exit is a possibility for them but equally, they have a chance of qualifying. They are capable of big displays but don't look to have the overall depth to regain the cup.
Belmont
Manager – James Murphy/Coach, Shane Curley;
Selectors – Joe Kenny, Paul Egan;
Captain – Colin Egan;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Paddy Clancy, Barry Egan, Shane Murphy, Conor Kenny are travelling;
New players – Adam Egan, Aron McCabe and Brian Carroll are up from minor.
Last year – Bowed out in the group stages;
Star player – David Nally;
Key players – Oisin Kelly, Jack Clancy, Leon Fox, James Nally;
Prospects – Belmont have been agonisingly close to reaching the final over the years but took a step backwards last year. This year will give an idea of whether that is a temporary blip or more terminal but they laid down a serious marker with a very impressive display when beating Birr in the Division 1 Hurling League final recently. They have earned full respect and are such a tough team to beat. They have a handful of really good players and will have to really perform to emerge from a tough group where there is very little margin for error. They have a good chance of reaching the quarter-finals and are capable of beating anyone in this group but it is going to be very tight here. There was something compelling about the way they played in the league final but championship is always different. They are title contenders but need almost everything to go right for them to make history.
Kinnitty
Manager – Michael Bergin;
Selectors – Ger Coughlan, Liam Bergin, Ciaran Comerford, Andrew Tooher;
Captain – Danny Flanagan;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Colm Coughlan;
New players – None;
Last year – Retained senior status;
Star player – Paddy Delaney;
Key players – Cathal Robinson, Shane Kinsella;
Prospects – Kinnitty have been drawn in a very tough group, a real dogfight of one and they are the rank outsiders. A very proud club who have contributed so much to Offaly hurling, Kinnitty's only realistic aim this year is to retain senior status. Their prospects of avoiding the relegation play off is not helped by the fact that a defeat to them could prove fatal to the knockout prospects of the other teams. They could very well take a big scalp but at the moment, they are favourites for the relegation play off and staying up will represent a successful campaign for them.
GROUP 2
Kilcormac-Killoughey
Manager – Shane Hand;
Selectors – Mark Leonard, Colm Cassidy, Tommy Bracken. Coach: Tony Gleeson. S&C: Sean Sweeney;
Captain – Conor Slevin;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Ger Healion has retired after a fantastic career while Thomas Geraghty is away for the early rounds;
New players – Ter Guinan, Daniel Hand, James Mahon and Leigh Kavanagh have all been named on the first 18 and can only play in the top flight this year, having helped K-K win senior “B” last year
Last year – Champions;
Star player – Cillian Kiely;
Key players – Adam Screeney, Brecon Kavanagh, Charlie Mitchell;
Prospects – Kilcormac-Killoughey are very much the team to beat. One of their challenges is managing the huge array of talent at their disposal and keeping everyone content will be no easy task. They should qualify comfortably out of the group and they are the championship favourites.
St Rynagh's
Manager - Jeffrey Lynskey;
Selectors – Niall Wynne and Cathal Horan;
Captain – Not picked yet;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Aaron Kenny and Paul Quirke have long term injuries;
New players – Aaron Molloy and Darragh Scully;
Last year – Beaten semi-finalists;
Star player – Ben Conneely;
Key players – Shane Rigney, Luke O'Connor, Pat Camon;
Prospects – St Rynagh's look to be heading into a period of transition and it remains to be seen if they have enough of a kick that can win another championship. They should be able to claim one of the three knockout places on offer from this group and will be hard to beat but you certainly couldn't say with any degree of certainty that they will win the Sean Robbins Cup.
Coolderry
Manager - Brian Carroll;
Selectors – Niall Kirwan, Des Teehan, James Masterson (S&C);
Captain – Stephen Connolly;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Cian O’Connor;
New players – Ajay Cleary, Marc Ryan;
Last year – Beaten in quarter-final;
Star player – David King;
Key players – Stephen Corcoran, Eoin Burke, Kevin Connolly;
Prospects – You can't make any convincing case at the moment for Coolderry extending their lead at the top of the Offaly senior hurling roll of honour but they are past masters at confounding the odds. Long time star Brian Carroll is the manager – he has a huge passion for Coolderry hurling and will leave no stone unturned. The first priority for Coolderry is to beat Tullamore and Seir Kieran and qualify out of the group. They will always be difficult to beat and generally perform. They don't look to have the overall depth in strength to win a title but they are always capable of shocks.
Tullamore
Manager – Edwin Finnerty;
Selectors – Adrian Mordan, Davin Finnerty, PJ Martin, Benny Martin;
Captain – Ger Crowe and Niall Houlihan;
Retirements/Long term injuries – Adam Cleary is travelling;
New players – Cillian Bourke, Tom Furlong, Jay Sheerin;
Last year – Retained senior status;
Star player – Cormac Egan;
Key players – Niall Furlong, Shane Dooley, Cillian Martin;
Prospects – While Tullamore will be dreaming of a quarter-final place, their primary goal this year is to retain senior status. Tullamore's best players are up there with many of the top teams but they just don't have the strength in depth, the overall quality to win a championship. Yet a quarter-final is possible, albeit in the long shot category. They will be writing off the Kilcormac-Killoughey game as well as targeting Coolderry and St Rynagh's while Seir Kieran is a must win for them. Relegation is on the table but they may survive another year.
Seir Kieran
Manager – Jimmy Dunne;
Selectors – David Kennedy, Barry Bergin;
Captain – Michael Gilligan;
Retirements/Long term injuries – None;
New players – None;
Last year – Retained senior status;
Star player – Adrian Hynes;
Key players – Kevin Dunne, Sean Coughlan;
Prospects – A proud club with a great appetite to remain in the top flight, Seir Kieran's main goal is to again avoid relegation. Anything else will be a bonus. You can be fairly certain of Seir Kieran performing close to their best every day and they have terrific heart. They are in a similar position to Tullamore and their game could well determine who avoids the relegation play off.
