FOLEY COMMITTED
Kev: It’ll take all we’ve got to win
KEVIN FOLEY says Wexford can be a serious hurling force again – provided they sort out their alarming inconsistency.
New boss Keith Rossiter has guided his team to Sunday’s Dioralyte Walsh Cup final against Henry Shefflin’s (inset) Galway.
Ties against Carlow and Kilkenny so far have offered the opportunity to blend new talent with tried and trusted performers like Foley, Jack O’connor and Lee Chin.
It’s a work in progress and while experienced Foley insists he’s desperate for silverware, he accepts it won’t happen unless they finally start delivering week in, week out.
Last year’s surprise win over Kilkenny in the Leinster championship, seven days after their shock loss to Westmeath, summed up their Jekyll and Hyde nature.
Foley agreed that beating the Cats shows they can hack it at the top level.
He said: “It does but then the other side of it is that the week before you’re reminded of how competitive it is and how dangerous it is when you’re not tuned in. We could have been .... well, we were facing into a relegation battle.
“It’s so competitive as well, look at Galway, Dublin, how competitive Antrim are, Westmeath beating us last year... it’s a tough campaign to be going through.
“You need bodies, you need everybody fresh because if you pick up a couple of injuries it’s dangerous territory to be going into.
“It’s there to be won, it’s open. You have to hand it to Kilkenny, they’ve won the last four or five Leinster titles. But on any day, you know, you could nearly pick any team to top the group or win it out.”
Foley will shortly turn 29 and says time is running out for him to win big with Wexford.
The versatile Rapparees midfielder said: “It’s crazy how quickly it goes by. Reality kicks in and you look back and you say, ‘Where are the medals?’.
“You look back at the trophy cabinet and what’s there and you’d be as hungry as ever to win another Leinster and see can you go further and push further.
“It’s definitely success that you’re after.
“You’re not there just to pass through another year, and there’s been a couple of those down through the years, so we only want to get over the line.”
Performing to a high level, game after game, is the key for Foley.
The 2019 Leinster medallist said: “The question I suppose is the consistency, why isn’t it happening every game or why does it take a certain game to draw it out of us?
“Definitely there are a lot of passionate people down in Wexford and they love their GAA to be fair but it’s about channelling that and directing that through for every game, whether it be League or Championship, and we need to build on that consistency and prove that we are not going to turn it on and off, that it’s there throughout.”