Carlow win by double scores
First blood to neighbours in championship preview
THE HEAVY-HITTERS will be welcomed back with open arms for this weekend’s Allianz Football League Division 4 final after Wexford’s makeshift line-up suffered a big defeat for the second Sunday in succession, this time to Carlow, before a small crowd in Netwatch Cullen Park.
The sides will be doing it all over again at the same venue in the Leinster championship, but this wasn’t much of a dress rehearsal in terms of determining how that might pan out given the experimental nature of the visitors.
The home team fielded a much closer to full strength 15, notwithstanding the absence of Brendan Murphy and Daniel St. Ledger, and they probably felt they owed Wexford one too as they still stood a mathematical chance of gaining promotion ahead of our capitulation to Westmeath with a weakened selection.
And now the time has come for the Slaneysiders to bring back the big guns and try to re-establish a winning groove, because momentum is often hard to gather again after a string of good results is brought to an end.
Manager Seamus McEnaney will have got everything he wanted out of these last two games though despite the outcome, and he probably learned a lot more from a tough in-house challenge played on Thursday night.
For starters, nobody on the extended panel can compalin about a lack of game time in the league, and it’s hardly his fault if so few of them put their hands up over the last two Sundays to suggest they are deserving of a regular place.
As regards championship pointers, the display of Carlow midfielder Seán Murphy was duly noted. Up to this juncture Wexford followers would have been familiar with the Fenagh man lining out against us in hurling, but he is no mean exponent of the big ball either as his exploits in this tie underlined. His searing pace gave Carlow the upper hand at midfield where he formed a strong partnership with Darragh Foley, and it was from that platform that their deserved victory was established.
Given the amount of possession they enjoyed, it was hard to credit how the home side only led by 0-6 to 0-4 at half-time.
That was partly down to poor finishing on their part, shooting nine of their twelve wides in all during that spell whereas Wexford only had four, two per half.
However, the latter fact was caused by the lack of chances created as opposed to any great economy on their part in front of the posts.
Indeed, the opening Wexford score didn’t arrive until the 22nd minute when Donal Shanley converted a free off the ground after a foul on P.J. Banville.
Carlow had registered four times beforehand and already were clearly up for this challenge, with the stylish Paul Broderick catching the eye as always at corner-forward.
He availed of a neat Alan Kelly pass down the right flank to fire over with his left boot in the second minute, and 60 seconds later he won a Darragh Foley line ball and hooked over his second with his less-favoured foot from close range.
Broderick made it three from an eleventh-minute free after Adrian Flynn tugged the jersey of the already rampant Seán Murphy who gave Niall Hughes a torrid time before Eoghan Nolan was introduced in the 46th minute in a bid to match him for pace.
Murphy’s mark started a move which ended with a good longrange point from midfield partner Darragh Foley in the 18th minute, with Wexford restricted to a few poor scoring attempts up to that stage.
Niall Hughes had kicked a wide midway through the opening quarter, having struck an earlier effort short, while James Stafford didn’t get hold of a kick from distance which was no trouble for netminder Craig Kearney.
The first of the four wides had arrived after just 23 seconds from Adrian Flynn, but fortunes did finally improve after that opening score from Shanley.
Carlow’s use of John Murphy as an extra body in the middle third left John Leacy in a free role at the back, but the locals were attacking at will and dominating possession.
Thankfully they had chalked up seven wides too before Shanley made it 4-1, but the leaders responded well initially as Alan Kelly picked out wing-back Mark Rennick for a point before number six Gary Kelly stole in behind the full-back line and widened the gap further after Seán Gannon spotted him and delivered an inch-perfect pass.
The only spell where Wexford had any sustained joy was from the 28th minute to half-time when they hit three points on the trot.
The first came from Adrian Flynn at the end of a move started by a Niall Hughes mark, with the last two passes supplied by Michael O’Regan and Tiarnan Rossiter.
Colm Kehoe then earned a free for Donal Shanley to slot over before the Cloughbawn man arrowed over a good kick from just inside the 45-metre line in added time, after P.J. Banville had hit the post with a point attempt four minutes earlier.
Two of the three Wexford players on yellow cards - Kehoe and Jim Rossiter - were replaced at half-time by Syl Byrne and Seán Gaul respectively, while the third, John Leacy, was destined to collect a second before the end.
The Glynn-Barntown man resumed at centre-back, with Ronan Devereux dropping back to the left corner and Naomhan Rossiter moving to the right.
Seán Murphy continued his impressive showing with a point before Donal Shanley almost knocked an Adrian Flynn delivery to the net as Carlow goalkeeper Craig Kearney struggled to get into the air in a portent of things to come.
Shanley made it 7-5 from a free earned by P.J. Banville, but the outcome was well and truly sealed over the next ten minutes as Carlow scored 1-4 without a response.
Murphy soloed through again and opted for a point when a goal was on, while third choice netminder Richard Farrell showed his ability with a fine save to deny substitute Jamie Clarke whose first involvement saw him race away from Seán Gaul. Paul Broderick knocked over a free before adding one from play after his initial shot for goal rebounded to him following another good stop from Farrell (0-10 to 0-5).
An Adrian Flynn wide and the introduction of Eoghan Nolan was quickly followed by the decisive green flag in the 47th minute. A Jake Firman pass to Flynn was intercepted, with Mark Rennick and Paul Broderick leading the breakaway before Richard Farrell saved again, this time from Seán Gannon, only to see Jamie Clarke on hand to tap in the break.
Broderick added a pointed free before Flynn ended a barren period of nearly 16 minutes for Wexford, but it was only a consolation as Eoghan Nolan’s goal attempt was smothered by Craig Kearney seconds before after good work by Firman and Michael O’Regan.
A Donal Shanley free hit the post before being cleared, but Wexford gave themselves a slight glimmer of hope in the 61st minute when substitute Ryan Nolan jumped with Kearney to contest a delivery from the right by Flynn and did enough to force it to the net (1-11 to 1-6).
Shane O’Neill (free) and O’Regan exchanged points before a penalty in the first of three added minutes made doubly sure of the win for the home side.
John Leacy tripped Seán Gannon to concede a penalty seconds after a goal-saving tackle on Seán Murphy, with referee Alan Kissane opting for a second yellow rather than a black before following up with the red.
Substitute Jamie Clarke was given the task of beating Richard Farrell in the absence of the substituted Paul Broderick, and he made no mistake before late points from Shane O’Neill and Darragh Foley (free) left Carlow with a double-scores success that will buoy them ahead of that championship meeting on May 21.
Wexford: Richard Farrell; John Leacy, Jim Rossiter, Naomhan Rossiter; Adrian Flynn (0-2), Ronan Devereux, Tiarnan Rossiter; Niall Hughes, Colm Kehoe (capt., 0-1); James Stafford, Paul Curtis, Jake Firman; P.J. Banville, Michael O’Regan (0-1), Donal Shanley (0-3 frees). Subs. - Seán Gaul for J. Rossiter (HT), Syl Byrne for Kehoe (HT), Eoghan Nolan for Hughes (46), Ryan Nolan (1-0) for Curtis (51), Kevin O’Grady for Banville (54), John Tubritt for Firman (69).
Carlow: Craig Kearney; Barry John Molloy, Shane Redmond, Kieran Nolan; Mark Rennick (0-1), Gary Kelly (01), Danny Moran; Darragh Foley (capt., 0-2, 1 free), Seán Murphy (0-2); Seán Gannon, Graham Power, Alan Kelly; Paul Broderick (0-6, 3 frees), Shane O’Neill (0-2, 1 free), John Murphy. Subs. - Jamie Clarke (2-0, 1 pen.) for Power (40), Chris Crowley for Nolan (51), Brian Cawley for Rennick (54), Jack Kennedy for A. Kelly (54), Seán Bambrick for Broderick (62), Darren Crooks for Murphy, inj. (68).
Referee: Alan Kissane (Waterford). ALLIANZ FL DIVISION 4 TABLE P W D L F A Pt 7 6 1 0 170 92 13 7 5 0 2 92 110 10 7 4 1 2 120 94 9 7 4 0 3 99 98 8 7 4 0 3 119114 8 7 2 0 5 98 103 4 7 1 0 6 91 125 2 7 1 0 6 90 143 2 Westmeath Wexford Carlow Limerick Leitrim Waterford Wicklow London