Shocking defeat for bumbling Wexford
March 1995
Meath 1-16, Wexford 0-16: The hurlers of Wexford bumbled their way to a shocking defeat at Bellefield on Sunday as their National League ambitions took a disastrous nosedive. Lowly Meath, who were fitter and better organised, conjured a memorable win on their first-ever visit to Enniscorthy.
They had signalled loudly that they were in good form with a win over Offaly in the previous round of Division 2, but they appeared to be one it wonders in the early stages of Sunday’s game as Wexford picked off a steady flow of points.
With free-taker Damien Fitzhenry scoring most of them, Wexford led by a comfortable 0-7 to 0-1 after just 12 minutes. They continued to dominate until half time, though the Royals did keep in touch with a goal.
The teams turned around with Wexford ahead by 0-13 to 1-6 – handily enough placed, without any need for complacency.
When Martin Storey tipped over a pass from Fitzhenry shortly after the resumption, it seemed that God was in his heaven and all was right with the world. Instead, the natural order of things was poised for a major upset as the homesters’ scoring touch completely left them.
Meath, in contrast, began to grow in confidence as their defence stood firm. Railway Cup player Pat Potterton was flawless with frees, and the longer the contest went on, the more ragged Wexford looked.
With Liam Griffin’s men scoring just three times in the second half, Meath pulled ahead in the 50th minute, and they were three ahead as the game went into injury time. A goalbound shot by Martin Storey might have salvaged a draw for Wexford, but it careered into a Meath defender and out for a ‘65’ that was dropped in before being cleared.
Damien Fitzhenry in midfield was the only Wexford player to emerge with reputation enhanced. He grafted hard in open play, and was immaculate with his frees. Otherwise, it’s hard to sum up this Wexford performance. Jaded, ring rusty, uncoordinated, unsharp, indecisive, inconsistent - take your pick!
Wexford: Ian Scallan; Liam Dunne, Ger Cush, Sean Flood; Dave Guiney, George O’Connor, Larry O’Gorman; Damien Fitzhenry (0-6 frees), Adrian Fenlon; Martin Storey (0-4), Tom Dempsey (0-2), Austin Codd; Larry Murphy (0-1), James Quirke, Eamonn Scallan (0-3). Sub - Paul Finn for Codd, 43 minutes.