Jacko strikes late to g
Thirteen-man Wexford rewarded for per
WEXFORD DUBLIN
THE CONSTANT tooting of referee Johnny Murphy’s whistle was still ringing in the ears long after Wexford produced a late smash and grab raid to pluck the two Allianz League Division 1 points from under Dublin’s noses in this stop-start Group B affair in Croke Park on Saturday.
A game almost completely devoid of any flow or continuity looked to be veering away from the visitors when they trailed by two points in the second of the five added minutes announced.
However, that was the cue for strong-running substitute Jack O’Connor to latch on to a ball that was directed towards fellow replacement Cathal Dunbar on the Cusack Stand side.
And with the ground opening up in front of him, and the nearest Dublin defender backing off rather than attempting to stop him in his tracks, it was too good an invitation for the St. Martin’s man to turn down as he surged closer to the Hill 16 end posts before drilling a low shot across the body of Seán Brennan and into the far corner of the net.
While the crowd on the night eventually swelled to 26,153, the Dubs fans who had drifted in already prior to their football clash with Dublin were left stunned and silenced as their side now trailed by 2-12 to 0-17.
Just for good measure, 45 seconds later a Kevin Foley clearance found Diarmuid O’Keeffe, and he in turn played the ball into the right corner for Paul Morris.
The Ferns man moved outfield to make a better angle for himself before splitting the posts, giving his side a precious twopoint cushion although the hard work was far from over.
Indeed, Dublin almost snatched victory as the game moved into the fourth added minute, with substitute Cian Boland’s first-time pull flying over the bar after Mark Fanning batted away a shot by Paul Ryan (2-13 to 0-18).
Wexford had been reduced to 13 men after the dismissals of Conor McDonald (straight red) and Shaun Murphy (second yellow), while Dublin had lost Eoghan O’Donnell to a double booking and also ended with 13 fit players as Chris Crummey sustained an injury after they had used their five substitutes.
Ronan Hayes squandered a chance for the home side to equalise, but only because Kevin Foley got in a crucial hook, and a similar piece of sheer hard work at the other end ultimately led to the insurance point.
A block by Jack O’Connor created an opening for Cathal Dunbar and, although his effort on goal was smothered at the expense of a ’65, Paul Morris took his time over the strike before nailing his seventh point and giving Wexford their third win from four league outings.
It leaves them in a qualifying slot, most likely for the quarter-finals, although a direct route to the semis is still a possibility, but only if they can make it three wins on the trot at home to Carlow, and Clare lose.
This game was unfortunately dominated, from first whistle to last, by the constant interventions of referee Johnny Murphy whose unwillingness to utilise the advantage rule, and obsession with halting play for the minimum of contact in what is a physical game, left supporters of both sides longing, in vain, for a game of hurling to break out at some stage.
It was incredibly frustrating to watch, and that view must have been shared by the players who were constantly called back for a free to be taken even after they had broken through a tackle and were making ground.
By game’s end, 13 yellow cards plus three reds had been flashed, while I had a final free count of 24 apiece along with the first-half penalty awarded to Wexford. Others reckoned it had tipped over the 50 mark, and without recourse to watching a recording of the game afterwards, that may well have been the case.
It wasn’t easy to keep tabs on the man in green’s every decision, because it was even difficult to remain composed in the press box as we watched it unfold, but suffice to say that I hope this particular official doesn’t feature in charge of another Wexford match any time soon.
The mentors decided to start the returning trio of Diarmuid O’Keeffe, Lee Chin and Matthew O’Hanlon, with the latter having the honour of playing his one-hundredth Senior game for the county on the hallowed turf of Croke Park.
Indeed, all five of the substitutes utilised versus Kilkenny – the above-named trio plus Rory O’Connor and Mikie Dwyer – were on the first 15 along with corner-back Conor Firman, with Simon Donohoe, Pádraig Foley, Liam Óg McGovern, Jack O’Connor, Cathal Dunbar and Conor McDonald all reverting to the bench.
With O’Hanlon withdrawn at half-time, followed by Chin in the 47th minute, it’s clear that the joint captains need plenty of hurling to get back up to their usual levels, although a strong impact from the bench was powered once again by Pádraig Foley and Jack O’Connor in particular as Wexford launched their late burst.
Rory O’Connor was selected as the Allianz man of the match, and it was thoroughly deserved after he produced some mesmerising play in the second-half in particular after revelling in the open spaces and giving the Dublin defence a torrid time.
Chin’s sole score arrived from a free after 54 seconds following a foul on Kevin Foley, who moved back from right half-forward to sweep as per normal. That led to Aidan Nolan drifting over from the left wing to the right, with Rory O’Connor moving out to the flank from the corner as James Madden tried to follow his every move.
Likewise, Paddy Smyth was assigned man-marking duties on Nolan, with Cian O’Callaghan policing Paul Morris in the corner.
The game was punctuated by free after free from the off, although it was surprising that referee Murphy didn’t punish Chris Crummey and Danny Sutcliffe respectively for off-the-ball hits on Joe O’Connor and Shaun Murphy that were quite clear from the press box.
Dublin’s two opening points arrived from placed balls struck by Oisín O’Rorke – an early injury casualty – and Ronan Hayes, before Paul Morris hit the first from play after an Aidan Nolan handpass in the 15th minute.
Crummey restored the Dublin lead after Conor Firman stumbled over a Joe O’Connor line ball, and substitute Paul Ryan then made it 0-4 to 0-2 from another placed ball in the 25th minute.
It was very poor fare, although Wexford followed with a bright spell as Cian O’Callaghan was dispossesed and Aidan Rochford fed clubmate Diarmuid O’Keeffe for a point.
Morris equalised after a foul on Damien Reck, but Ryan responded twice before the first Wexford goal arrived in the 32nd minute.
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