Waterford’s Derek McGrath pleased with a job well done

The first question Derek McGrath was asked was not how they beat Wexford, but how they’ll beat Kilkenny.

It was that sort of game in Thurles – a sort of crossing point from where Waterford were coming from to where they were always likely to be.

Wexford probably made that crossing a little easier than expected, although at times Waterford made it hard on themselves too – especially by firing 13 first-half wides.

So how, for starters, does McGrath intend to fix that misfiring for their All-Ireland semi-final against Kilkenny, the repeat of last year’s showdown which Waterford lost by six points.

“The only obvious fix I could see was to take the ball on, a little bit more, before the shot is taken. That’s the best way of fixing it in my opinion, particularly guys that have the legs, Austin Gleeson, Shane Bennett,” said McGrath. “If they take their guy on they’re not going to be caught, and they’re better like that, rather than taking a snap at it.”

Further practice

McGrath suggested too that some of his Waterford players have the chance for some further practice in the Munster under-21 hurling final, against Tipperary, at Walsh Park this Wednesday evening. Part of the problem here was the expectation Waterford were always likely to win, even if he never once saw it that way.

“If you do a cold analysis of it, Dublin beat Wexford, then Cork beat Dublin, and Wexford beat Cork, so as I said, it’s all on the day. The natural expectation is that the players would come out smarting, but it’s one thing talking about it and another thing doing it.

“And I’m glad they just did it, and that’s the satisfying thing. Now I reckon we’ll be 4-1, 5-1, for the semi-final. And that’s a great place to be.

“They’ve another massive opportunity on Wednesday night to go to an All-Ireland final, if they win that, so we’ve lots of polished items on display on Wednesday night, and it’s just about them staying as grounded as they can.

Ultimately he knows Kilkenny will present a far greater challenge than Wexford.

“Of course improvement is going to have to come all over the field. But it’s a balance. With 61 minutes gone in the All-Ireland semi-final last year there were two points in it, and we just never went for the game. But it’s a great place to be, in the last four of thee hurling championship, two years in a row, from where we’ve come.”

For Liam Dunne, the first question is whether or not he intends on staying on for another year as Wexford manager, and he certainly didn’t duck the question.

“Well these guys have kept me going, the whole year. I’m five years with this, three years with Oulart before that, two years with the minors before that, two years with the Wexford juveniles, and that’s after 16 years of playing myself. So if anyone deserves a good long break it’s me.

“But look, obviously I’d love to continue on another year. I have to talk with my employers, who have been very good, but we’re building, and to get to the last six with this team is a marvellous achievement. They’re a super group of players. But it’s not for me to decide. . .

“On the day we were definitely beaten by the much better team. They had us on the back foot from start to finish.

“But I was under no illusions what Waterford would bring to the table today, but if we had all our guys fit, we’d be a match for any team. I’m delighted for Derek, to be honest, he’s been good to me, and he works a system that works well for Waterford, and I wish them well in the semi-final.

“It was probably a day when we ran out of bodies, and out of legs, but I can’t fault my guys. We’ve given it everything. . . But this is a very young team, with great spirit, and they’ll come again. They’ve showed what they can do this year.”