Key to our season could be the Offaly and Dublin games

MY USUAL weekend of G.A.A. started on Friday evening when I was, not surprisingly, asked to model at the Wexford camogie fashion show which turned out to be an extremely enjoyable night, and well done to all that organised it.

Due to the success of my performance, my phone hasn’t stopped since with eager retailers wanting to retain the services of a slightly older, larger model to promote their wares.

I then attended a thrilling Thurles semi between old rivals Tipperary and Limerick on Saturday which also encompassed an opportunity to learn about Kilkenny’s ongoing flow of young talent, with St. Kieran’s again clinching the colleges title in the curtain-raiser.

Despite Tipp’s win I was hugely impressed by the resolve of the Treaty men and, had they eliminated a couple of errors and taken the many chances presented, they would have been in the final.

I have no doubt that with the return of the Na Piarsaigh players they will have a serious impact on the 2018 season. The game was memorable for two pieces of genius, one reverse handpass from substitute Barry Nash and a monster sideline cut from the Tipperary midfielder Ronan Maher.

I will admit, however, that the main thought occupying my mind all over the Easter weekend was how our charges would perform against the Cats in Innovate Wexford Park.

I have always appreciated the passion for hurling in the south-east but was taken aback by the huge 16,000 plus crowd that gathered to see the old foes collide.

Apart from the opening seven minutes and the period around the Conor Mac goal, they had little opportunity to ignite.

Credit where credit is due, as Brian Cody and his men were excellent all through, and the Kilkenny maestro has done a huge job in reconstructing this team throughout the league.

They have changed their hurling style, particularly when coming out of defence. We were used to the long delivery (Jackie Tyrrell, Paul Murphy-like) but they are now using the short game very effectively and they seem to have unearthed some good new forwards, with John Donnelly and particularly Bill Sheehan catching the eye.

There is no doubt that but for the brilliance of Mark Fanning we could have been well out of the game at an earlier stage. Along with the Glynn-Barntown netminder, Rory O’Connor was the other outstanding Wexford player on show.

Kilkenny’s use of the crossfield angled ball served to eliminate the effectiveness of Shaun Murphy to a great extent but, tactics aside, the men in black and amber were much sharper, winning most of the rucks and running at us effectively.

In fairness to our men, it has been the first time this season that we have come out second best in those areas. We looked a little flat-footed and fatigued, and my good friend from across the border, Adrian Ronan, agreed with me that possibly the extra week between quarter and semi served their men better in preparation.

The league has been a success as a whole for Wexford, retaining our status and beating the All-Ireland champions on the journey, and there is certainly no need to panic as we are in a good place overall.

I felt we could win on Sunday but a little worry in the back of my mind was, no matter how consistent a team is, there will be always a flat performance somewhere along the road.

I still believe there will be very little between the two teams come Nowlan Park, and Sunday has served really to transfer the tag of favourites back on to Kilkenny. I think this will suit just fine in the lead up to our next battle with Cody’s men.

In Wexford, sometimes we tend to focus on how we perform against the black and amber, but the key to our season could yet be the Offaly and Dublin games. Whilst we have the ability, we need to tread warily here.

We have a fine young team, a fantastic management system, brilliant support and have achieved much over the past 16 months. I can’t wait for championship.