An uninspiring win
Wexford stutter to victory in derby
WEXFORD YOUTHS 2 KILKENNY 0
GOALS FROM Rianna Jarrett and Blessing Kingsley helped Wexford Youths stutter to an uninspiring victory against a spirited Kilkenny side in the SÓ Hotels Women’s National League at Ferrycarrig Park on Saturday.
Having conceded ten against Shelbourne and seven versus Peamount, the visitors might have expected to be in for a rough evening, but Tom Elmes’ side struggled to put quality passages of play together consistently throughout the game.
Part of it was attitude. Wins against Kilkenny are expected and performances have reflected that in recent seasons.
There was an almost universal lack of urgency, despite having ample possession, and on another day the hosts could have paid a costly price.
There was just one change to the side that eased past Limerick six days earlier, with McKenna Davidson coming into the starting line-up in place of Edel Kennedy.
The Hawaiian was one of the energetic performers, particularly in the first-half, when Wexford played most of their somewhat-better-than-mediocre football.
Kilkenny didn’t have any trouble getting up for the game against their south-east rivals. In fact, they put so much effort into scurrying around and nipping at Wexford heels in the first-half that they had nothing left for a late push when only a goal separated the sides in the last ten minutes.
Wexford got far more joy deep on the right wing than they did on the left, and it started in the opening moments with Davidson winning a corner.
Rianna Jarrett eventually got a header on Doireann Fahey’s cross but Amy Cahill made the save and her defence scrambled the ball to safety.
Cahill scuppered Jarrett’s hopes again four minutes later when the Irish international striker tried to take the ball around her, but there was no stopping her bullet finish in the ninth minute.
Lauren Dwyer sent Davidson away on the right, she pulled back for Jarrett, and the Youths top scorer thumped it high to the Kilkenny net.
Zara Lawless headed a Leah Doyle corner over for Kilkenny while the linesperson at the other end - who had a fairly archaic view on the offside rule - adjudged the ball to have gone over the byline in the 20th minute when Davidson crossed for Kylie Murphy to nod home.
Another putting in a good shift, Doireann Fahey, knocked in a free that fell to Parrock on the edge of the area in the 23rd minute, but the winger’s strike was held by Cahill. Lauren Kelly sliced over a minute later from another Fahey cross.
Tara Long gave Orlaith Conlon all she could handle in the 28th minute but she scuffed her shot wide of the near post.
Wexford did finish the half on the front foot, as Murphy dragged her shot wide from 20 yards out, Jarrett dribbled a shot at goal, and Parrock forced Cahill into a stop at her near post, but it stayed 1-0.
The occasional Kilkenny forays forward were reduced even further in the second-half, but Wexford struggled to penetrate the wall of bodies.
Jarrett had the ball in the net in the 47th minute but was flagged for offside, as she was when clean through five minutes later.
Vanessa Ogbonna forced Cahill into a stop seconds after her introduction. It was a day of disappointing set-piece deliveries for Wexford, but Lauren Dwyer did head one very deep corner off target in the 62nd minute.
Carla McManus had the one Kilkenny effort of note with 20 minutes left but Maeve Williams held her low 25-yarder.
Blessing Kingsley was next to find the waiting gloves of Cahill with a shot from the edge of the area as Wexford huffed and puffed.
It was probably apt that they wrapped up the points in the 84th minute from a Kilkenny blunder rather than a moment of quality.
A nothing ball got between Cahill and Leah Doyle and the visiting ‘keeper walloped it off her defender. It fell to Kingsley and she made no mistake with a composed finish to the empty net.
Wexford could have made it three when Orlaith Conlon smacked a shot off the crossbar in added-time. She might have deserved the goal but it probably would have flattered Youths as a collective unit.
These sides meet again in Ferrycarrig on Saturday in the League Cup (6.30 p.m.), and the next league game is away to Shelbourne two weeks later.
The Tolka Park side lost to Peamount on Saturday, seven days after drawing with Galway, so that contest takes on added significance in the title race.
Wexford Youths: Maeve Williams; Becky Cassin, Lauren Dwyer, Orlaith Conlon, Doireann Fahey; Aoife Slattery; Kylie Murphy (capt.), Lauren Kelly; McKenna Davidson, Rianna Jarrett, Katrina Parrock. Subs. - Vanessa Ogbonna for Parrock (60), Nicola Sinnott for Cassin (60), Blessing Kingsley for Slattery (72), also Sophie Lenehan, Orla Casey, Ciara Delaney.
Kilkenny: Amy Cahill; Aoife Brophy, Emma Boyle, Zara Lawless, Leah F. Doyle; Bronagh Kane (capt.), Abbie Brophy, Kayla Cooling, Tara Long, Naima Cheamou; Carla McManus. Subs. - Nicole Plunkett for Cooling (69), also Lauren Davis, Jennifer O’Neill, Sofia De Stefano, Lia Reilly, Leah C. Doyle, Ann Marie Byrne.
Referee: Seamus Kelly (Wexford).