Were Offaly right to play the Division 3 League final at the weekend?
THE argument for, by Gordon Manning:  ON the face of it, Mickey Harte was learning while John Maughan was losing. Sportsfile 2 A goal-mouth scramble during the Derry-Offaly match  Harte, with Louth having already secured promotion from Division 4, could sit back and watch Offaly in action against Derry, study how they play, pick out their strengths and notice their weaknesses. Irrespective of what happened last Saturday at Croke Park, his Louth team would have a two-week lead into their Leinster Senior Football Championship opener against the Faithful County, and be entering the game on the back of a feel-good promotion semi-final win over Carlow. Had Offaly decided against pushing to play the Division 3 final, they would also have entered the Leinster SFC opener with a two-week lead in and on the back of a promotion semi-final win, that coming over Fermanagh. But the county wanted to play the final at Croke Park, where they ultimately got well beaten by a Derry team that looked far superior. ROLLED THE DICE  So now they enter next weeks encounter with one week of preparation and following a confidence-denting heavy defeat. They might well lose to Louth. They might not. But both Offaly and Louth will lose at some stage in the Leinster SFC. Because they wont win it. And both camps know that. But Offaly will end the year having at least rolled the dice and taken a chance. They were 70 minutes away from winning the only piece of silverware that was realistically attainable to them in 2021. When you think about it, opting not to take up the option of playing a final at Croke Park in favour of preparing for a first-round game in a competition you have no chance of winning makes no sense. The only ones who would disagree are those who view the sport through those blinkered, traditional lenses that skew the landscape with a signpost declaring Championship is the be all and end all.  John Maughan has been around long enough to know history and memories can be made at many crossroads along the journey. Not just on the Championship stage. LEARNED FROM DEFEAT  Offaly took a shot. To judge whether it was worth it or not based solely on the result is to miss the point of what sport is all about. In defeat, they too would have learned about themselves. And for some of those Offaly players the game provided them with a first opportunity to play at Croke Park. Something they will remember forever. For others, it might ultimately prove to have been a chance to play there one last time. BETTING OFFERS: FREE BETS AND BEST NEW CUSTOMER DEALS  Because who knows when the Offaly footballers will get back to play at Croke Park, never mind for a final with silverware on offer. They showed bravery, ambition and a bigger-picture outlook by contesting a league final last weekend. The argument against, by Jason Byrne:  OFFALY had to be careful what they wished for. 2 Cathal Mangan, left, and Bill Carroll of Offaly  Hindsight is a great thing but playing their Division 3 final against Derry at Croke Park was the wrong call. The Faithful were on a huge high coming into the game. Offaly football was in a better place than it had been for a very long time. They had won all four league outings and sealed promotion to Division 2. The scenes at OConnor Park after their 1-14 to 0-12 play-off win over Fermanagh were joyful. OFF TO CROKER  The players basked in the glory with their couple of hundred fans lucky enough to get through the stiles in Tullamore. Corner-back Niall Darby posed for a celebratory photo with his uncle Samus, who scored the dramatic goal that won the county the 1982 All-Ireland final and denied Kerry the five in a row. Their big days at Croke Park have been few and far between since the Kingdom were humbled 39 long years ago. Derry were always going to be hot favourites on the back of scoring 6-67 from their previous four outings and a new swashbuckling approach under Rory Gallagher. CRASHING DOWN  But the Oak Leafers are not in Ulster Championship action until July 11, when they play a quarter- final against the winners of this Sundays preliminary-round clash between Down and Donegal. Offaly went into Croke Park on the crest of a wave but it all came crashing down with a miserable 0-21 to 1-6 defeat. Boss John Maughan has worked wonders with the side, but they were totally outclassed. He called it an ugly defeat but insisted they had no regrets about playing the game. However, the nature of that loss is bound to have a psychological effect on his players ahead of their Leinster SFC first-round showdown with Louth on Sunday in Navan. CONFIDENCE WIPED OUT  Confidence levels will have hit the floor and Maughan needs to say his prayers that nobody is on the treatment table this week. Heavy training is unlikely in the coming days and Louth are coming into the game fresh as daisies from their victory over Carlow to seal promotion on June 12. Offaly will be battered and bruised mentally and physically, and arriving into a Championship battle eight days later is far from ideal. You can see why Maughans men wanted their day out at Croke Park  to give their loyal fans something to shout about on the back of so many bad days for the county. But once they sealed promotion against Fermanagh, they should have quit while they were ahead. DUBLIN DOMINATION  The league is certainly more important than the Championship for teams like Offaly now, and that is just the way the game has gone. The provincial system works against them and the chasing pack in Leinster have no hope of competing with Dublin. Time, live stream, team news and odds HEAVY HITTERS Donegal v Dublin: TV channel, live stream, team news and betting odds TIPP TOP Viewers call Tipperary jersey 'the business' as they wear Bloody Sunday colours NEXT FACILITY Dublin GAA to develop second centre of excellence in Hollystown  But Offalys job was done. They gained promotion and were full value for it. They have risked a Championship victory in the process. Nobody knows how the game will go, but if they lose to Louth on Sunday, their fans will lament their ugly defeat in Croker.