but their lack of options on the bench began to tell against them. The Birr contingent won their first All Ireland Club Title in March 1995, so they were unavailable to Éamonn Cregan for most of the NHL campaign (during which Johnny Dooley amassed 1-58). The Faithful County still managed to regain Division 1 status and had pleasing wins over Liam Griffin's Wexford (0-16 to 0-14) and over Cork in the Quarter-final (3-10 to 2-11). Although Kilkenny beat them by 4-8 to 0-14 in the League Semi-final at Thurles, Cregan shrugged off Offaly's slackness as something that could be fixed in time for championship. The coach's sangfroid was vindicated by Offaly's 2-14 to 1-10 victory over Wexford on 25 June – the first Leinster Senior Hurling Championship match to be broadcast live on television. Joe Dooley's goal was vital in maintaining an advantage in the third quarter, when Wexford's strategy of luring Offaly's half back line out of position looked like it might pay off. Unbeaten by the Slaneysiders since 1979, Offaly had nearly come to depend on Wexford's erratic shooting whenever the chips were down. That remained true in 1995 – but Griffin would have recalibrated by the following year. Billy Dooley (0-5) was Offaly's top scorer in the Leinster Senior Hurling Final on 16 July 1995. The throw-in was delayed by a cloudburst, accompanied by thunder and lightning, during which Offaly retreated to their dressing room while the Kilkenny players huddled miserably in the dug-outs. When play did commence, Offaly answered those who had installed Kilkenny as favorites by recording one of their most total victories (Offaly 2-16, Kilkenny 2-5). Although only 0-5 to 0-3 up by half time, the Faithful County had absorbed phenomenal pressure and had broken Kilkenny's resolve by then. Offaly's deft flicks and passes opened up the game in the second half, and the scores began to flow. With Kevin Kinahan in close attendance, DJ Carey made no headway until too late to matter. Since 1980, Offaly had now lifted the Bob O'Keeffe Cup nine times (to seven for the Cats). In the All Ireland Semi-final (6 August 1995), Offaly beat Down by 2-19 to 2-8. On a sweltering afternoon that sapped the energy of some players, Johnny Dooley's 11-point contribution ensured that there would be no repeat of the Antrim result in 1989. Ger Loughnane's Clare team would be the opposition on 3