CATS SIGHS
Griffin admits Model have it all to do for place in final tonight
Kilkenny v Wexford Nowlan Park, 7pm
LIAM GRIFFIN believes Wexford face a “monumental task” to reach a Leinster final as they travel to Nowlan Park.
With Galway already assured of their spot in the decider, whoever emerges from the Kilkenny-wexford tie will join them, though a draw would be enough for Wexford given their superior scoring difference.
While a fan of the new format, Griffin feels the scheduling leaves his county at a huge disadvantage.
They play for the fourth weekend running, while Kilkenny have enjoyed a two-week break, and signs of fatigue were evident in Wexford’s performance in defeat to Galway last Saturday. “There’s absolutely no question or doubt about it,” says the 1996 All-ireland winning boss (below). “It’s going to be harder for Wexford this week than last week. Does that mean they won’t win? No. I’m not suggesting that. “But it’s certainly going to be a monumental task for Wexford to win based on that. Last week took a lot out of Wexford mentally as well as physically because they would not have been happy by not performing as well as they could.
“They will be naturally disappointed with that and it’s a big ask to turn that around after a week’s work on top of everything else.” Having made hard work of beating Dublin and Offaly before being well beaten by Galway, the perception that this isn’t a vintage Kilkenny team hardens though Griffin knocked that on the head swiftly.
“From sitting on my father’s knee going to matches, I know lots about Kilkenny.
“Any Kilkenny team that you ever set out for the last 50 years or for the next 50, there’ll only be a shade of difference between one team and the next, I guarantee you that.
“This Kilkenny team, while there’s a lot of new faces, you have a situation where you’ve the likes of Kieran’s and Kilkenny CBS going to All-ireland finals on a nonstop basis in colleges hurling, winning minors and 21s, look at the stats.
“The stats tell you there’s lots of players who never made
Kilkenny teams who would have made any other county team on lots of occasions because of the strength in depth and because of the strength in depth of their clubs.”
Wexford had largely enjoyed the upper hand on Kilkenny since Davy Fitzgerald took over until their two meetings in this year’s League.
While Wexford were already through to the knockout stages ahead of three-point defeat on March 11, their nine-point loss to Brian Cody’s (right) side at home in the League semifinal three weeks later was far more alarming.
Again, Griffin believes that tiredness played a part after
their win over Galway the previous weekend.
“Wexford didn’t throw that game against Kilkenny, I can assure you, they wanted to beat them worse than the blind can see but they just hadn’t the legs on the day and they were very, very flat and you’d have to say they were very flat last Saturday.
“I still say Galway were brilliant but they were playing a team that was very, very flat and we missed four points from frees in the first half.
“But I still think it’s very difficult for Wexford to undo Kilkenny in Nowlan Park in particular.
“We couldn’t undo them in Wexford Park after the Galway game so you’d have to think they start as red-roaring favourites but, lookit, stranger things have happened and it certainly would be on the strange side if we could go out and beat Kilkenny in their back yard, no question about it.”