Shaky start for new system
Wexford alter tactics but suffer heaviest loss of season
UNDER PRESSURE Wexford F.C. unveiled a new tactical formation for Tuesday’s EA Sports Cup first round clash with neighbours Waterford in Ferrycarrig Park, but it came apart at the seams as the visitors exercised total control to inflict the heaviest defeat of a dismal season to date on the struggling home side.
The Blues were full value for their 2-0 interval lead, and they continued to exert near total control on the re-start before finishing with a flourish, adding another three goals between the 87th and 90th minutes.
Two members of the Wexford coaching staff, Will and Eamonn Doyle, parted company with the club in the aftermath of this latest setback. The defeat came after the decision was taken to try something different as the 4-5-1 formation had only yielded three goals from six league outings.
Wing-half roles were given to captain for the night Ricky Fox and Seán Hurley, with the duo performing as full-backs in a back five when Waterford were attacking, while reverting to attacking mode when Wexford had the ball. It was either a 5-3-2 or 3-5-2 depending on the circumstances, with Liam Donnelly joining Craig Hayes as an out-and-out front man for the first time after featuring on the wing in earlier outings.
As expected, wholesale changes were made from the 2-0 league loss away to Shelbourne four nights earlier. All seven players who started on the bench in Tolka Park were on the team this time around along with Adam Hanlon who hadn’t been part of that match-day squad.
Owen McCormack, Shane Dunne and Liam Donnelly were the only three retained in the first eleven, and before the game ended there was a debut at Senior level for teenage attacker Danny Doyle plus a late appearance by his Under-19 colleague, Dean George.
Waterford paraded three Ferrycarrig Park old boys in netminder Matt Connor, Conor Whittle and Gary Delaney, with the latter leaving a big mark on proceedings when his headed goal just before the interval effectively ended the tie as a contest.
It took for a long time for the game to come to life, with a Donnelly shot well saved by Connor in the tenth minute after Craig Hayes sprayed a neat pass crossfield from left to right.
The first of Waterford’s five corners (Wexford had two) was dealt with before Anthony McAlavey fired over the bar in the 14th minute after David McDaid made a break and the ball broke off defender Owen McCormack into his path.
The sting was taken out of a shot from Patrick McClean by a block which made it easy for Corey Chambers to deal with, while the first free-kick of the game wasn’t awarded until the 20th minute when Craig Hayes was impeded and John McKeown’s delivery caused some problems before eventually being cleared.
Wexford were undone for the first time in the 26th minute when Shane O’Connor delivered a long ball from the left for David McDaid to run onto at the clubhouse end. Corey Chambers may have hesitated for a split second before advancing off his line, and that was all it needed for the Derryman to knock the ball past him and tap it into a gaping net.
McKeown delivered another set-piece too close to netminder Connor before a timely block by Owen McCormack denied Shane O’Connor after good work by McAlavey and Dean Walsh.
Connor cut out a cross-cumshot by Ricky Fox after a neat flick by Craig Hayes before Shane O’Connor of Waterford was booked.
An Adam Hanlon shot was blocked by the experienced Kenny Browne for Wexford’s first corner in the 38th minute, with McKeown taking it short to Shane Dunne whose cross was claimed by Connor.
Hayes cleared from a Garry Comerford free-kick, but Waterford continued to press in the lead-up to half-time and were ultimately rewarded.
After the Blues wasted a corner, Seán Hurley was booked for a foul on Dean O’Halloran and the set-piece from Comerford was knocked over the byline by Chambers. This delivery from O’Halloran was deflected towards the back post into the path of Comerford whose shot was blocked, but that second Waterford goal was just around the corner.
It was created by a magnificent long-range pass by centre-half Kenny Browne, whose move back to his home town club from Cork City just before the season started caught everyone by surprise, including his old boss, John Caulfield, by all accounts.
He simply is too good for this level, a point borne out by the sublime ball he played to the right wing for David McDaid whose cross to the far post was headed home by Gary Delaney.
Wexford fans had often warmed to the sight of the big centre-half scoring at this ground in the past, but not on this occasion as he settles into his second stint with Waterford after leaving Ferrycarrig Park before this campaign started.
The home side were left to chase the game and it looked a very tall order. In truth, they only really threatened to pull a goal back once, less than four minutes into the new half when Craig Hayes drove a hard shot over the bar after Liam Donnelly was pushed just outside the box.
Delaney cleared when Shane Dunne tried to pick out Seán Hurley at the far post from another setpiece, while Seán Eve conceded a corner which led to a couple of deliveries from Dean O’Halloran which were dealt woth.
Anthony McAlavey was booked for a challenge on Dunne whose free-kick was headed over the bar by Owen McCormack in the 56th minute.
Young Danny Doyle replaced Liam Donnelly and won Wexford’s sole second-half corner in his first involvement, with John McKeown’s delivery partially cleared by Waterford debutant Jack Lynch before Craig Hayes saw his shot blocked.
O’Halloran headed clear from a Shane Dunne free-kick before featuring again at the other end when Corey Chambers parried his probing ball.
David McDaid fired wide after recently-introduced substitute Owen Wall scuffed the initial shot, but the new man was the name on everyone’s lips by game’s end after causing havoc down the left flank near the finish.
Another ex-Wexford Youths player, Conor Whittle, embarked on a strong run and tested Chambers with a good effort which was knocked out for a corner with 15 minutes left.
And it almost led to a third goal for Waterford, with Ricky Fox clearing off the line when Dean O’Halloran’s delivery found Jack Lynch.
Fox was later yellow-carded before the floodgates opened in a disastrous conclusion for Wexford. Their rivals had looked extremely comfortable in the second-half up to that point, but they were determined to finish with a flourish.
And Wall was the main man, crashing a shot off the crossbar in the 84th minute after a menacing run. It took a vital tackle by Conor Sutton to stop Garry Comerford from playing Wall in on the next Waterford attack, but the inexperienced Wexford defence endured a nightmare ending to the game.
Wall applied an easy finish from close range in the 87th minute, with referee Anthony Buttimer applying a sensible advantage after Corey Chambers took down Shane O’Connor.
Just over 90 seconds later Wall drove another shot off the bar, but this time David McDaid was on hand to double his own tally from the rebound.
And the misery was compounded just before the three added minutes started when roles were reversed, with McDaid’s cross finding Wall who beat Chambers in a tussle for the ball and forced it home at the second attempt to crown an impressive late cameo.
Wexford F.C.: Corey Chambers; Conor Sutton, Owen McCormack, Seán Eve; Ricky Fox (capt.), John McKeown, Shane Dunne, Adam Hanlon, Seán Hurley; Liam Donnelly, Craig Hayes. Subs. - Danny Doyle for Donnelly (64), Andrew O’Connor for Hurley (68), Dean George for Hayes (79), also Eoin Porter, Craig McCabe, Craig Wall, Graham Doyle.
Waterford F.C.: Matt Connor; Conor Whittle, Gary Delaney, Kenny Browne, Patrick McClean; Dean O’Halloran (capt.), Anthony McAlavey, Garry Comerford, Shane O’Connor; David McDaid, Dean Walsh. Subs. - Jack Lynch for McClean (HT), Owen Wall for Walsh (71), Tunmise Sobowale for McAlavey (84), also Mark O’Sullivan, Derek Daly, David Mulcahy, Matthew Sheehan.
Referee: Anthony Buttimer (Cork).