Biggest loss follows first win
Shambolic defending as rampant Longford score five
LONGFORD TOWN 5 WEXFORD F.C. 0
THE FEEL-GOOD factor after Wexford’s long overdue first win of the SSE Airtricity First Division season didn’t take long to disappear as they were subjected to an unmerciful hammering by rampant Longford Town in this total mismatch before 211 spectators in City Calling Stadium on Saturday.
The warning signs were apparent after a mere 15 seconds when Ferrycarrig Park old boy Aidan Friel played a one-two with Kealan Dillon down the right flank and fired in a dangerous low delivery across the face of Graham Doyle’s goal.
There was nobody on the end of that cross, but it was a different story in the third minute when Dillon directed the ball to the far post from the same area and Dylan McGlade ghosted in from the left to fire decisively to the net.
What followed was nothing short of an utter shambles from Wexford’s point of view as a weak defence was repeatedly picked apart, with wing-backs Mark Slater and Seán Hurley struggling to cope with the regular forays of the home side down either flank.
It was hard to credit that these sides had played out a scoreless draw earlier in the season in Ferrycarrig Park, because Longford could arguably have won by even more on this occasion.
This was Wexford’s heaviest defeat of a dismal league season, and the second time they have endured a 5-0 hammering after losing to Waterford by a similar margin in the EA Sports Cup.
And to put it in context, let’s not forget that Longford are nowhere near challenging for the sole promotion spot.
The division reached its halfway stage in this encounter, and already there’s a clear demarcation line between the top four of Waterford, Cobh Ramblers, U.C.D. and Cabinteely, and the rest comprising Saturday’s opponents plus Shelbourne and Athlone Town.
Wexford had a threadbare bench with just four players for the second time in recent weeks, with two changes from the Shelbourne victory as Ricky Fox (suspended) and Shane Dunne (hamstring) were replaced by Seán Hurley and Conor Sutton respectively.
Adam Hanlon was also absent with a hip problem, but it should be noted that Longford were minus key men too in David O’Sullivan, Don Cowan, Enda Curran and Mark Langtry.
Lee Duffy set up Liam Donnelly for a shot which didn’t trouble Paul Skinner prior to that opener for the home side, and they never looked back thereafter.
There was both purpose and poise to Longford’s play that Wexford simply couldn’t match, with the locals spraying passes around most effectively and enjoying far too much time on the ball.
The lively Dylan McGlade had a long-range shot saved in the seventh minute before the offside flag denied Lee Duffy after a neat ball into his path from strike partner Liam Donnelly.
Longford’s first corner from Jake Kelly went wide off influential captain Kevin O’Connor, while Liam Donnelly headed over after an Owen McCormack free-kick on the left in the 14th minute.
Wexford’s first corner was earned by Mark Slater but came to nothing, while a long Craig McCabe throw-in was cleared and led to a Longford break that ended when Kealan Dillon over-hit a high ball to Jake Kelly.
The home side looked menacing every time they moved beyond midfield though, with Dillon shooting to the right and wide in the 22nd minute after Dylan McGlade pulled the ball back from the byline.
Graham Doyle fisted a Longford Town corner clear before Wexford’s best chance of an equaliser arrived in the 25th minute.
A bad touch from the otherwise impeccable Stephen Walsh led to a corner on the right which Mark Slater directed towards the edge of the box, with Thomas Croke hooking the ball goalwards but seeing his attempt headed off the line by Kealan Dillon.
Jake Kelly then set up Dean Zambra whose first-time shot was saved one-handed by Graham Doyle, with Lee Duffy firing to the right and wide on the visitors’ next attack.
Seán Hurley played the ball into the box where Conor Sutton and Liam Donnelly were both lurking, with the latter getting the final touch but seeing his effort miss the target.
The ever-dangerous McGlade then sought out Kevin O’Connor with a cross but Graham Doyle’s fist came to the rescue.
A clever Kealan Dillon free-kick into space led to Gavin Boyne crossing for McGlade who had two bites at the cherry but didn’t get a proper connection on either occasion.
A Mark Slater shot was blocked and his cross from the rebound was headed out by Aidan Friel for a corner, but Lee Duffy’s set-piece from the left went out for a throw on the far side of the field.
Longford had threatened so much that a second goal was inevitable, and it duly arrived in the 40th minute.
Full-back Tristan Noack-Hofmann played the ball into the box to Gavin Boyne who won a 50-50 with Ross Kenny before crossing for Dean Zambra to drill home from point-blank range.
Longford’s tails were up as Graham Doyle made a comfortable save from a Kevin O’Connor shot, while Jake Kelly let Stephen Walsh’s long ball bounce once before shooting to the left and wide in the last goalmouth action of the half.
A big response was clearly needed from Wexford, but it certainly wasn’t forthcoming. Indeed, they grew increasingly ragged as the game progressed, and it was difficult to fathom how they could go from a seasonal high to such a low in the space of eight days.
Seán Hurley shot over from an audacious lob just inside the Longford half in the 50th minute, but the leaders were home and hosed after pouncing for goal number three shortly afterwards.
Dean Zambra played the ball into the box from the left where Kevin O’Connor’s attempted pass rebounded to his feet.
He promptly beat Graham Doyle at his near post with a low drive, leaving Wexford staring a 3-0 deficit in the face with 37 minutes still to play.
While no strangers to defeats in the league campaign thus far, they had been by one- and two-goal margins, but this latest capitulation suggests that it will be an achievement in itself to get off the bottom spot in the second half of the season.
Thomas Croke tried to play in Lee Duffy but Stephen Walsh made a crucial interception, while Graham Doyle advanced to beat Kevin O’Connor to the ball after Aidan Friel instigated a break.
Jake Kelly had a first-time shot saved after Gavin Boyne got his head to a Paul Skinner clearance, while Wexford’s best chance of the half fell to Lee Duffy in the 57th minute when his shot from Mark Slater’s pass was stopped by the netminder.
Kevin O’Connor and Dean Zambra linked up at the other end before Jake Kelly forced Graham Doyle into a decent save at the ex- pense of a corner that was cleared.
A similar Wexford set-piece from Slater was dealt with by Longford before Andrew O’Connor and Danny Doyle entered the fray, with the visitors reverting to four at the back but still going on to ship two further goals.
The first arrived in the 68th minute when good work from Kealan Dillon and Gavin Boyne was finished by Dean Zambra whose second of the night came from a sweet right-footed shot.
Tristan Noack-Hofmann got a vital touch to nick a Seán Hurley cross away from Mark Slater, but Longford added their fifth just four minutes after that Zambra strike.
This time Gavin Boyne directed a long ball into the path of Jake Kelly who rolled it to Kealan Dillon. The momentum seemed to have been lost when he stopped in his tracks, but he still managed to beat Ross Kenny quite easily and made no mistake to complete a miserable night for the visitors.
There was still 18 minutes to go, and mercifully Longford didn’t score again.
Liam Donnelly fired a shot off Tristan Noack-Hofmann for a fruitless corner, with a second setpiece leading to a Longford break.
Dylan McGlade tried to tee up Kealan Dillon, but Graham Doyle was equal to the threat and came out to make an interception.
Thomas Croke was booked before Doyle cut out a low Aidan Friel cross, with Croke shooting over from a Donnelly lay-off prior to the final whistle of referee David Berry which finally put a woeful Wexford side out of their misery.
There was a bizarre postscript to the game when Longford manager Alan Mathews left the club by mutual consent, a decision that must have been arrived at before this morale-boosting victory for the midlanders.
Wexford will be in St. Colman’s Park on Friday at 7.45 p.m. to take on Cobh Ramblers, with the league then taking a brief break before resuming on June 16.
Wexford F.C.: Graham Doyle (capt.); Craig McCabe, Ross Kenny, Owen McCormack; Mark Slater, Conor Sutton, Craig Wall, Thomas Croke, Seán Hurley; Liam Donnelly, Lee Duffy. Subs. - Danny Doyle for Duffy (62), Andrew O’Connor for Sutton (62), Dean George for Hurley (71), also Corey Chambers.
Longford Town: Paul Skinner; Aidan Friel, Daniel O’Reilly, Stephen Walsh, Tristan Noack-Hofmann; Kealan Dillon, Kevin O’Connor (capt.), Dean Zambra, Dylan McGlade; Gavin Boyne, Jake Kelly. Subs. - Noel Haverty for O’Reilly (74), Karl Chambers for Kelly (80), Aodh Dervin for O’Connor (80), also Jack Brady, Rhys Gorman, Shane Fagan.
Referee: David Berry (Dublin).