Clinical Wexford coast home
London clash put to bed early thanks to powerful start
WEXFORD 4-15 LONDON 1-9
A CLINICAL and ruthless firsthalf display got the job done in double-quick time in Chadwicks Wexford Park on Sunday when the Senior footballers chalked up three wins on the trot for the first time since 2017 with a comfortable 15-point dismissal of an outclassed London side.
It was vitally important to keep the momentum going in this fourth round Allianz League Division 4 encounter, particularly as a real dogfight looks on the cards in the weeks to come to determine the two promoted teams.
And the bright and breezy play of the home team in the opening half was very easy on the eye, on the day when captain fantastic Brian Malone made his record 165th competitive Senior appearance in the county colours.
Wexford put the game beyond reach of their limited rivals with impressive ease, surging clear by 2-9 to nil after 21 minutes and leaving absolutely no doubt regarding the eventual outcome.
And the difference in the space of just twelve months certainly wasn’t lost on those of us who had the misfortune to be in Ruislip on that fateful day last year when the exiles humiliated the visitors on a 2-10 to 0-8 scoreline.
The 23-point swing is a clear indication of the improved fortunes of the team since Paul Galvin put his stamp on their approach to the game, with the strong emphasis on quick deliveries to the inside forward line paying off in rich measure.
The experienced Ben Brosnan is prospering from this tactic more than anybody else, and he was on fire on Sunday as the Wexford attack made the most of the chances created.
He had come on during that cross-channel loss last year, and was one of just seven survivors in total along with Conor Carty, Eoin Porter, Niall Hughes, Brian Malone, Jonathan Bealin and Eoghan Nolan.
Nine of the 20 London players involved in this heavy defeat had been on the other side of the outcome when Ciarán Deely guided them to that unexpected victory over his native county, but the decision to dispense with his services hasn’t paid off if this result is anything to go by.
Having said that, the team now managed by Michael Maher had run Limerick and Antrim to one and four points respectively in their two most recent outings, so a lot of credit must be heaped on Wexford for blitzing them with such a clinical approach.
All three of the goalscorers raised green flags with the Seniors for the first time, with Mark Rossiter’s second the pick of the bunch. Shelmaliers colleagues Eoghan Nolan and Glen Malone also rattled the net, and the outcome was a foregone conclusion by half-time when the hosts led by 2-11 to 0-2.
They needed a mere 21 seconds to open their account with the wind in their favour, courtesy of Jonathan Bealin from a Rossiter lay-off.
And they were only denied two early goals by the expert reflexes of London netminder Noel Maher, as he kept out shots by Ben Brosnan and Niall Hughes in the second and fourth minutes respectively.
Brosnan nailed the two o’45s that arose to show that his eyewas well and truly in, with the visitors rattled to such an extent that they continued to give the ball away cheaply in their own half.
Brosnan added the first of his three from play before Tom Byrne joined the list of scorers with a high kick with his left peg in the eighth minute to make it 0-5 to nil.
Another Brosnan point, this time from a free, was followed by the opening goal, with his one-two with midfielder Eoghan Nolan punishing another London loss of possession.
The midfielder may have used his knee or thigh to force the ball over the line from close range, but the fact that his first inter-county goal wasn’t the prettiest didn’t matter in the slightest.
As if London weren’t under enough pressure already, they lost defender Conor O’Neill to the sin-bin on a black card in the 14th minute.
And by the time he returned, Wexford had added another 1-3 to their haul without reply. Niall Hughes and Brian Malone combined in the 15th minute before Brosnan’s handpass across the square was first-timed to the net at the back post by Mark Rossiter.
Brosnan (play), Byrne and Brosnan (free) widened the gap to 2-9 to nil, before London finally managed their first shot in anger in the 30th minute.
Netminder Ivan Meegan, having been unemployed until then, spilled Thomas Clarke’s attempt that was falling short and then conceded a ’45 as Seán Nolan applied pressure.
That kick was sweetly converted by rival goalkeeper Noel Maher, but it was one of the rare occasions in the course of a one-sided contest when London displayed any glimpses of quality.
Conor Carty replied with a lovely outside-of-the-boot left-footed point from a Niall Hughes lay-off 40 metres out, with Tom Byrne curling over a free from the right side before London’s sole point of the opening half from play arrived in the 35th minute.
Fearghal McMahon’s shot from a Liam Gavaghan pass went over via the crossbar, leaving a Wexford side that had kicked six wides without any in reply with that commanding 2-11 to 0-2 interval advantage.
London did improve to some degree on the re-start with the elements in their favour, but not to the extent that they were ever going to surmount that large deficit.
Gavaghan and Brosnan swapped early points from frees before a high kick by London’s James Hynes split the posts, but Mark Rossiter responded in emphatic fashion with a peach of a goal in the 40th minute.
Glen Malone’s cross from the right was diverted into his path by Brosnan, and the corner-forward hit it instinctively with his left into the top right corner of the net to make it 3-12 to 0-4.
A strong run down the left flank by Tom Byrne led to another point for Brosnan, with Liam Gavaghan replying from a free before goal number four arrived in the 48th minute.
Yet again there was a central role played by the outstanding Brosnan, although he merely provided the assist on this occasion – featuring a one-two with Glen Malone who thundered through the middle before planting the ball well out of Noel Maher’s reach (4-13 to 0-5).
Eoghan Nolan added a point for good measure, and it wasn’t a big concern that Wexford didn’t score again for 21 minutes because they were so far out of sight.
London pulled back four points in that period, with the first courtesy of lively substitute Seán Hickey whose piledriver was superbly diverted on to the bar and over by netminder Ivan Meegan.
Charles Doherty, Hickey again and Ronan Sloan with a fisted effort also registered for London in a half featuring three wides apiece, before Wexford picked off their last point in added time.
It was another first score in the inter-county Senior ranks, this time from substitute John Dunne after a Seán Ryan lay-off, and the only blot on the copybook occurred when the losers goaled with the second-last kick.
A high, hopeful punt from Ronan Sloan was collected by Seán Hickey who off-loaded to Liam Gavaghan, and he side-footed home from close range.
It was one of the few moments to savour for a London side whose unused substitutes included Gavin Watchorn from Duffry Rovers, while their loyal and long-serving kitman, Glynn-Barntown’s Phil Roche, also made the trip back to his native soil.
Next up for Wexford is another home tie on Saturday against Sligo, who have faltered with successive losses to Wicklow and Waterford after opening with victories versus London and Antrim respectively.
Promotion is well within the grasp of Galvin’s charges and, while the opposition will clearly be stronger this time around, the form they are showing suggests that they are more than capable of continuing this welcome winning streak.
Wexford: Ivan Meegan; Robbie Barron, Gavin Sheehan, Conor Carty (0-1); Eoin Porter, Jim Rossiter, Brian Malone (capt.); Eoghan Nolan (1-1), Niall Hughes; Jonathan Bealin (0-1), Glen Malone (1-0), Tom Byrne (0-3, 1 free); Conor Devitt, Ben Brosnan (0-8, 3 frees, 2 ’45s), Mark Rossiter (2-0). Subs. - Oisín Foley for Sheehan (48), Ríoghan Crosbie for Brosnan (55), Liam Coleman for Hughes (57), Seán Ryan for M. Rossiter (61), John Dunne (0-1) for Nolan (65), also Pa Doyle, Martin O’Connor, James Stafford, Shane Doyle, Seán Nolan, Robbie Brooks.
London: Noel Maher (0-1 ’45); Philip Butler, Conor O’Neill, Eoin Flanagan; Ronan Sloan (0-1), David Carrabine, Eoin Walsh; Matthew Moynihan, Charles Doherty (0-1); Seán Nolan, James Hynes (0-1), Thomas Clarke; Fearghal McMahon (0-1), Christopher Duggan, Liam Gavaghan (1-2, 0-2 frees). Subs. - Ryan Jones for Butler (20), Seán Hickey (0-2) for O’Neill (HT), Ryan Forde for Clarke (HT), Liam Gallagher for Nolan (49), Liam Turley for McMahon (60). Sin-bin: Conor O’Neill (14).
Referee: David Murnane (Cork).