Free Brothers in Sport by Donal Keenan Page B

watching, wondering who was going to be the next Mark Corrigan (a star forward on the team of the 1980s). We also had a lot of the very experienced players who had been successful in the early 1980s. Having them around helped keep the young lads focused. Having won a few minor All-Irelands it can be hard to manage a group of young fellas. Young guys can get carried away with themselves a bit. Sometimes good minors mightn’t make good seniors as has been proven so often; there is a big step up from minor to senior and it is how you manage that transition that is very important. We had a successful conversion from minor to senior at the time and that sustained us during the 1990s.’
    Séamus and Kieran Dooley were making their contribution too. Séamus played under-age hurling for the county while Kieran played through four League campaigns and was a substitute for the 1986 Leinster senior final when Offaly lost to Kilkenny. ‘Kieran was unlucky,’ according to Joe. ‘It’s a funny thing, but if Johnny and Billy weren’t around Kieran would probably have played regularly for Offaly.’
    With such talent available from one family, it was no surprise that Seir Kieran were on the verge of a major breakthrough in Offaly. They reached their first ever county senior final in 1985 and over the following fifteen seasons would appear in ten more finals and play two replays, winning in 1988, 1995, 1996 and 1998. ‘We treasured everything we won with Offaly but the success of the club meant something different. Our numbers were very small but we were a very close group and very determined. To play in eleven finals in that period was a great achievement,’ says Joe.
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    What would become a familiar sight in Croke Park for the best part of the 1990s was still a novelty when Offaly won their first ever National League title on 12 May 1991, beating Wexford. Johnny and Joe Dooley started in the forward line that day and were joined during the game by substitute Billy, who replaced Mark Corrigan. But the dominance of Kilkenny in Leinster proved to be a source of frustration for the brothers and for Offaly over the next three Championships. The wait for a third All-Ireland title had stretched to nine seasons by the time the 1994 campaign began. The legendary Limerick player and coach Éamon Cregan had arrived to guide the county and a special chapter of hurling history began to unfold.
    Kilkenny were embarking on their own quest for history, having won the 1992 and 1993 All-Ireland titles, and were rated as clear favourites for the 1994 title. Offaly had not shown anything like the sort of form that hinted at what was to come, so the manner of Offaly’s victory over Kilkenny at the end of June in the Leinster semi-final, 2–16 to 3–9, took everyone by surprise. The Dooley boys scored 2–10 of Offaly’s total, Joe and Billy grabbing a goal apiece, while Johnny’s accuracy from placed balls was once again underlined. He was again top scorer with nine points when Offaly won their first Leinster title since 1990, beating Wexford in the final. It was a significant moment for Johnny and Billy, because it completed their collection of provincial honours to add to those of minor and under-21 won in the late 1980s. In the All-Ireland semi-final against Galway, Johnny, Billy and Joe scored 1–10 of Offaly’s total of 2–13 to set up what would become one of the most extraordinary All-Ireland finals of modern history.
    Much of the focus in the build-up surrounded the in-volvement of Offaly manager Cregan in the final against his beloved Limerick. That helped divert some of the attention away from the three Dooley brothers who were attempting to emulate the achievements of the Bonnars of Tipperary in 1989 and 1991. But the spotlight inevitably turned towards them in the fortnight before the final. ‘It was extraordinary to have three brothers make up one half of a forward line,’ recalls Johnny, ‘but we never felt any extra