Wexford already turning to the championship after cruel and unusual league hammering

Not many managers would go seeking out the positives in a record concession of scores, a first six-goal shipping in over 50 years, and the biggest losing margin in almost two decades.

“Sure it’s only the league” or otherwise, Wexford’s 22-point loss to Clare last Sunday week, 6-25 to 1-18, marked arguably their worst day out since the competition began. That was back in 1926.

They conceded 4-17 in the first half alone, typically enough to lose any match, and worse still it all happened at home. Even allowing for the increasingly vague reading into any result in the Allianz Hurling League, it was a cruel and unusual hammering.

For Wexford manager Darragh Egan, while admitting that conceding 4-17 in the first half “is just not acceptable ... not what we’re about at all”, there were positives nonetheless, even if not all up front and centre.

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Last year, Wexford won all five rounds of the league, before being taken out with ease in the semi-final stage by eventual champions Waterford. They also endured a relatively disappointing Leinster championship campaign.

Without established players such as Matthew O’Hanlon, Liam Ryan, Mark Fanning, Lee Chin and Rory O’Connor, Egan was also fielding a largely understrength team – not that he was entirely excusing that either.

The focus this season, Egan insists, needs to be on the championship. Wexford do have the advantage of playing three of their five round-robin Leinster championship matches at home (against Antrim, Westmeath and Kilkenny to finish), although they are away in their opening fixture, against Galway (on April 22nd) and also against Dublin (on May 6th).

Making the playoffs of the league at this point would appear to be of little interest, or indeed hope; with only one win from three so far, against Westmeath, it’s already a long shot, Jackie Tyrrell describing their display against Clare as “shambolic at times”, adding on RTÉ’s League Sunday that it was “without doubt their worst performance under Darragh Egan”.

Still, Egan is already looking beyond the horizon. It doesn’t help that Cork appear next, Pat Ryan’s team sitting alone atop Group 1A, with three wins from three, scoring eight goals so far to boot.

Chin, who didn’t start against Clare as a precaution after picking up an injury against Westmeath, will likely return for the game in Páirc Uí Chaoimh (3.45pm), with Cork looking to close in on a first league title in 25 years, having lost last year’s final to Waterford. They will face Clare in the final round.

For Egan, Sunday will at least in part be about ensuring their result against Clare isn’t read into any deeper.

“It’s not worrying me. We do have a few lads coming back and we just need to improve over the next few weeks, we won’t hit panic stations yet. We have a process to go after. We stated from the very start that we need to look at bodies, we need to be ready for when the championship comes.”

Meanwhile, Munster GAA have announced another partnership with Munster Camogie and Munster LGFA once again this year to provide curtain-raisers for Munster Senior Championship games.

A total of six curtain-raisers are planned, including one women’s football and five camogie games, over the course of April and May. The earlier start to the 2023 Munster Senior Football Championship reduces the opportunities for further Munster Ladies Football curtain-raisers.

Munster GAA chairman Ger Ryan said the “curtain-raisers to our 2022 Munster senior hurling and football championship games worked very well and I have no doubt the inclusion of further games this year will continue to enhance the bond between our respective bodies.”

Munster GAA double headers with Munster Camogie

Saturday April 29th

TUS Gaelic Grounds – Munster Senior Camogie Championship: Limerick v Clare, 4.30; Munster Senior Hurling Championship: Limerick v Clare, 7.0.

Sunday April 30th

Páirc Uí Chaoimh – Munster Senior Camogie Championship: Cork v Waterford, 1.30; Munster Senior Hurling Championship: Cork v Waterford, 4.0.

Saturday May 6th

Páirc Uí Chaoimh – Munster Senior Camogie Championship: Waterford/Cork v Tipperary, 4:30pm; Munster Senior Hurling Championship: Cork v Tipperary, 7.0.

Saturday May 13th

FBD Semple Stadium – Munster Senior Camogie Championship: Munster Final, 3.30; Munster Senior Hurling Championship: Waterford v Clare, 6.0.

Sunday May 21st

Cusack Park, Ennis – Munster Intermediate Camogie Final: Clare/Kerry v Cork, noon; Munster Senior Hurling Championship: Clare v Cork, 2.0.

Double header with Munster LGFA

Sunday May 7th (venue TBC)

Munster Senior Ladies Gaelic Football Championship: Cork v Kerry, 1.30; Munster Senior Football Championship Final, 4.0.