Fethard set for first clash with Harriers on return to Senior
ANOVEL first-ever meeting in the top grade is among the six Pettitt’s Senior championship games down for decision this weekend as the serious club hurling action gets under way. Newly-promoted Fethard didn’t face Faythe Harriers at any stage during their only previous stint at this level, from 1995 to 2001, so the sides will create history on Saturday at 5 p.m. in Taghmon when they clash in Group A.
The superior experience of the Wexford town team should give them a clear advantage, while the St. Mogue’s men will need everyone in order to make an impact as they bridge that 18-year gap.
Mikie Dwyer and Kevin Rowe haven’t featured in either of the football games thus far, but that famous Fethard spirit of old shone through in last year’s Intermediate knockout matches and ensures they can never be written off.
One thing that can surely be predicted with certainty is that the Ross District’s sole representatives in the top flight will score more than in their last Senior game - a 1-12 to 1-1 defeat to Duffry Rovers in the replayed relegation decider in 2001.
The championship will begin in Bellefield at 7 p.m. on Friday with an intriguing Group B contest featuring Oylegate-Glenbrien and Oulart-The Ballagh.
They met for the first time since 2009 last season, with the boys in blue claiming a notable scalp with an exciting 3-18 to 3-17 victory.
That strong form continued all the way to a first semi-final appearance since 1963, and it will be very interesting to see if M.J. Reck and his promising young charges can make additional progress in the coming months.
As for Oulart-The Ballagh, I don’t believe for a moment that they are a spent force. Several of their key men may be in the veteran category at this stage, but with Liam Dunne back at the helm and the players intent on proving there’s more in them than shown last year, there could be a serious backlash in this campaign.
That Friday game will be followed at 8.30 p.m. by a repeat of last year’s opening round tie when Rathnure beat Naomh Eanna by 2-14 to 2-12.
The Gorey men weren’t defeated again in eight matches until eventual All-Ireland champions Ballyhale Shamrocks ended their memorable year, and they will be expected to turn the tables on the Blackstairs crew this time around.
New Ross is due to stage a double-header on Saturday, starting at 2 p.m. with the meeting of Wexford District neighbours St. Martin’s and St. Anne’s.
They have clashed in six of the last seven years at group level, starting with a draw in 2012. The Rathangan side won in 2013 and 2014, but the recent advantage lies clearly with the Piercestown/ Murrintown crew as they prevailed in 2015, 2016, and last season.
One very interesting addition to the Anne’s ranks is Westmeath Senior hurler Aaron Craig, who joined the club from St. Oliver Plunkett’s in Mullingar last month.
The second game in O’Kennedy Park at 3.30 p.m. on Saturday will pit two more close neighbours together when Rapparees face Ferns St. Aidan’s.
In four meetings between 2011 and 2017, the Enniscorthy side won the first and the last, while their rivals were best in 2013 and 2014.
Rapparees will be out to show that last year’s heavy semi-final defeat to St. Martin’s hasn’t derailed the progress made beforehand, but a lot will depend on the injury situation regarding Liam Ryan.
The best chance for Ferns to win a Senior title probably passed them by when they ran Oulart-The Ballagh close in the 2013 final.
They, too, will be a lot stronger if Ryan’s county colleague, Paul Morris, is available, but the Rapps should win, albeit not by nearly as much as their 2-27 to 0-16 romp two years ago.
The Senior action will finish in Taghmon at 6.30 p.m. on Saturday, after the Harriers/Fethard game, when Glynn-Barntown take on Shelmaliers.
The sides have met four times in ten years, and the Killurin-based outfit have enjoyed a 3-1 advantage in wins, including their last game in 2017 on a 2-11 to 0-15 scoreline. The Shels might be good enough to turn the tables, but the outcome could go either way.