Disappointing not to hold out, but luck favoured the Dubs

WEXFORD SUPPORTERS left the tight confines of Parnell Park with mixed emotions on Sunday evening, with feelings in confusion as to whether it was the case of a point gained or a point lost.

There is no doubt when you hold a three-point lead in the fifth minute of injury-time that it is very disappointing not to hold out.

But if the action is taken as a whole, it would have been hard on the Dubs not to get something out of a game that they looked like steamrolling midway through the second-half.

At that point Dublin were hurling like winners and, but for a wonderful Mark Fanning intervention, the blues could have stretched their lead to eight points which, given the tightness of the exchanges, would have been a bridge too far for Davy’s men.

On the flip side, our comeback was spectacular and if we can have our men hurl consistently as they did in the last 15 or 20 minutes, we can be a match for anyone.

Parnell Park is a very welcoming little ground, with stewarding and officialdom as friendly as anywhere in the country, and with the proximity of the Craobh Chiaráin clubhouse, it offers a lovely social setting for spectators attending.

Questions must be asked, however, as to the differential in the playing dimensions compared to grounds like Cork, Thurles or Croke Park, and the different type of game that often unfolds there.

Maybe it’s the wall surrounding the pitch that makes it look so confined, but space seems at a premium and as a result an open game of hurling is almost an impossibility.

I would also question whether the facilities are sufficient to host a game like last weekend, and anyone who paid a half-time visit to the toilet will bear testament to this. Everything about the place seems a little claustrophobic.

The first-half was a close affair with the evenly-matched exchanges expressed as a level game at half-time.

Dublin were slightly happier going in at half-time with the breeze to come in the second period, and Wexford were reliant on frees and the brilliant long-range shooting from Shaun Murphy, who really put Danny Sutcliffe on the back foot, and the accuracy of the excellent Lee Chin.

We struggled on the resumption and there is no doubt on 63 minutes and five points down, after Fanning’s brilliance I would have taken hand and all if offered a draw.

Dublin will be disappointed but there is no doubt that Wexford showed incredible character with two wonderful team goals, albeit with a little help from some sloppy defending.

It was so pleasing to see that distinctive Liam Og fade from the right to the left foot before burying the ball in the roof of the net. This man has had such injury setbacks, and the goal was my day’s highlight in testament to his character and resilience.

Suddenly we were re-energised and took over the game and, yes, after Rory’s scorcher should have seen it out.

I had a niggly feeling that Dublin were going to get a little payback for the bad luck that has dogged them over the past couple of years, and it came in the form of a bad bounce from Seán Moran’s free.

So, we move to Salthill next Sunday with a point in the bag. It’s a tough place to go and we know we will need one big scalp along with Carlow’s (hopefully) to secure progression.

We will gain encouragement from the Tribes’ lack-lustre display against Carlow, and the absence of their spiritual leader Joe Canning, but there is no doubt that an improvement from our last performance will be needed in what is a step up in class.

This Leinster championship will hold many surprises over the next few weeks, with Galway still to visit the capital. The big games keep coming and if we can secure some form of a return from next week’s visit it would set us up nicely.

We have found Galway very tough in the more meaningful matches of late however, so it could be tricky.